Out in the Cold
by A. X. Zanier
Summary: A little vacation that is anything but. Final Chapter is up. Enjoy!
1. Chapter One

  
  
  
Author: A. X. Zanier  
Rating: PG-13 (Language, violence, adult situations)  
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or basic story ideas to "The Invisible Man." Any  
additional characters or ideas are mine. The lodge/resort within is loosely based on the Mammoth  
Lodge, but I have changed it to suit my purposes and no infringement is intended.  
Timeline: Takes place after "Interlude" but before "A Hot Summer's Night"  
Spoilers: vague references to season 1 eps.  
Comments: I was in a mood and decided to revisit the early days of Alyx Silver at the Agency. At  
this point she has full control, but is still not very comfortable with her abilities and her new  
life. She and Bobby have reached an uneasy truce and are trying to accept each other and the new  
situation. She and Darien are becoming friends, but she still is keeping her distance from  
everyone. This should be fun. Oh, and yes I do have a plot.  
  
Okay, I kinda got the idea for this one from and old issue of Sandman that involved a 'cereal'  
convention that wasn't what it seemed.  
  
Thanks to Rebecca(WorkerCaste) my Beta reader.  
--------------  
  
  
Out in the Cold  
  
  
  
"To do anything in this world worth doing, we must not stand back shivering and thinking of the  
cold and danger, but jump in, and scramble through as well as we can." --Sydney Smith (1771 - 1845)  
  
It's kind of like being thrown into the lake to teach you how to swim, or one of those lovely  
initiation rituals you find at your typical college -- or prison. Those can be dangerous, but there  
is usually someone nearby to pull your ass out of the fire if you run into serious trouble. Usually.  
  
  
  
  
Darien poked his head around the corner of the post he was hiding behind to watch the four men who  
were talking quietly a good twenty feet away. One carried a briefcase, and it was obvious even to  
Darien that they were all armed. "I don't like sending her in alone, Hobbes. She doesn't have  
nearly enough experience."  
  
"Fawkes, we've been over this. You have a time limit on sanity and she doesn't. She's already been  
see-thru for an hour, following Menkin all over this damn park." Hobbes sighed. "Let her do her  
job."  
  
"How do we know she's even there? Maybe she got caught." Darien didn't like this entire set-up.  
Menkin worked for a government lab and had been under suspicion of selling secrets for months. The  
Agency had gotten a tip that he was making another sale. They'd spent two days following Menkin,  
listening in on his calls, waiting for him to schedule the meet, and when he finally did, Hobbes  
had decided Alyx would tail them instead of Darien. He would follow her, sort of, act as her  
back-up. Back-up it was looking like she didn't need.  
  
*I'm still here, Dare. Now hush, before they hear you.* She sounded more than a little irritated.  
  
"Sorry," he muttered aloud.  
  
"The boss don't like eavesdroppers," a voice said quietly behind him. Darien spun around and found  
himself face-to-face with a short guy built like a brick wall.  
  
"Ah, crap." He jumped and twisted backwards as the guy swung with a wicked looking knife. The  
quicksilver flowed even as the knife sliced flesh, leaving a burning trail of pain across his back  
and down his left side.  
  
"Fawkes!" Hobbes shouted in his ear. "Talk to me, Fawkes."  
  
The guy with the knife was looking around, more than a bit confused by the sudden disappearance of  
his target. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. Swinging seemingly at random, he nearly succeeded in  
connecting with Darien again. Darien dodged and then swung, connecting with the guy's jaw and  
knocking him to the ground. Darien stomped onto the hand holding the knife, making the guy scream  
and release it. "I'm a little busy here, Hobbes. Some help might be nice."  
  
"Damn it, Fawkes. I'm on my way."  
  
The scream had attracted the attention of the other bodyguards that had been keeping in the  
background, and they all moved towards Darien's location.  
  
Inside, the exchange was hurriedly concluded so that everyone could make their escape. Alyx  
appeared then, shaking her head. Guns were quickly drawn, only to be yanked from their owners and  
held suspended in the air, out of reach. "Federal agent. You're under arrest."  
  
"I don't think so," Menkin snarled before coming after her.  
  
Not in the mood to deal with this, she simply grabbed all of them with her mind and knocked them to  
the ground, holding them there. Turning on the microphone for her headset, she moved to secure the  
disks and the briefcase. Opening the briefcase, she noted that there was a hell of a lot of money  
in it. "Hobbes, I have the package and the perps are secure."  
  
"Good, kid, now help Fawkes." Hobbes sounded out of breath, like he was running.  
  
Alyx did a quick mental search and found Darien, as well as three other guys who were intent on  
causing him some severe damage. He was hurt, which explained the subtle ache that ran across her  
side. She pocketed the disks, dropped the briefcase and guns, gave those stuck to the ground an  
admonishment to behave, and ran for where she knew Darien was. By the time she arrived,  
quicksilvered blood was beginning to appear and she knew he was hurt pretty bad. She waded in,  
throwing punches and karate kicks at the bodyguards who were rather shocked at the sheer violence  
she was dishing out. Bobby arrived less than a minute later and, with a single shot in one  
bodyguard's leg, convinced them to surrender.  
  
"Fawkes!" Hobbes shouted. "Where are you, partner?"  
  
There was a thud and an audible groan as Darien appeared sitting on the ground. His entire right  
side was covered in blood. "Ow," was his stellar comment.  
  
"Ah, hell Dare." Alyx moved over to him. "Hold still and let me see." She carefully peeled up the  
shirt, ignoring the blood that still flowed from the nearly eight-inch-long gash.  
  
"Ah, crap. That hurts." He tried to shove her away. "I'm fine. Claire'll patch me up."  
  
"At least let me get the bleeding stopped," Alyx said to him.  
  
"Fawkes, stop being a baby and let her do it. I don't need you bleeding all over the van." He  
stood from securing the last of the bodyguards. "The Fat Man won't cover the cleaning bill."  
  
Darien sighed as if he was being put-upon once again. "Hobbes..." He drew out his partner's name.  
  
"Fawkes..." Hobbes mimicked. "Kid, can you keep an eye on these guys while I tie up the rest?"  
  
"No prob. Let me know when you want them let up," Alyx said as she glared at the men lined up  
against the wall and the pile of weaponry Hobbes set near her.  
  
Hobbes chuckled. "I wondered why they weren't moving." He watched as Alyx picked up one of the  
guns and, after checking the action, handed it to Darien. Hobbes tried not to grin at the look of  
total dismay on Fawkes' face. Not quite ten minutes ago, he'd been complaining she wasn't nearly  
experienced enough, and now she was handling his injury, weaponry, and the bad guys like she'd been  
doing it as long as Hobbes.  
  
Alyx wasn't nearly as calm as she appeared. Once Hobbes walked off she turned back to Darien. "I  
have done this before. Let me help."  
  
Darien ground his teeth and glanced at her, catching something he didn't quite expect -- fear.  
"Sure, go ahead. I'll watch them."  
  
Alyx shifted around behind him to get a better look at the wound. It wasn't all that deep, though  
it might need stitches. It was just bleeding like crazy. The knife had been damn sharp and created  
a smooth cut, not tearing the edges of the flesh at all. "This is gonna hurt a bit." She  
quicksilvered the fingers on one hand and, after carefully holding the edges of the wound together,  
drew her fingers along it. Sealing it shut with the cold. It would do as a temporary patch job, much  
better than just holding a cloth over the slice.  
  
Darien yelped and paled. She hadn't been kidding about it hurting. This was the first time he'd  
really been on the receiving end of quicksilver chill, but he knew the method was effective. He'd  
used it himself in the past on others.  
  
"Okay, kid, turn 'em loose," Hobbes called out. Alyx released the four that included Menkin and his  
buyer from her mental grip.  
  
Menkin went crazy, even though he was secured hand and foot with those plastic ties that doubled as  
emergency cuffs. He snapped the ones holding his feet, went after one of the guns that Alyx had  
taken from them earlier, and attacked Hobbes, who shouted in surprise. With less than a thought,  
the knife that had been used to cut Darien appeared in her hand and she tossed it at Menkin. With a  
little mental help to increase the force, it buried itself into Menkin's shoulder, knocking him off  
his feet and ending any more resistance he might have been considering.  
  
Hobbes looked over at her with one eyebrow raised. He was careful not to show his surprise. "Nice  
one, kid."  
  
Alyx didn't respond, going a little pale as the reality of what she had just done -- hell, had been  
doing that entire afternoon -- sunk in. She'd aimed that knife for the man's head, and only at the  
last second had she decided to go for the disabling hit instead. She'd wanted the man dead, and  
that scared her.  
  
Darien had gotten carefully to his feet, once the threat of flying knives was over, and looked at  
her. "You okay?"  
  
She sat in place, shaking. "No."  
  
  
  
Later Darien lay on his side, shirtless and sore, down in the Keep. Claire was carefully cleaning  
the wound with warm antiseptic water and ignoring every little flinch and whimper Darien made. Not  
that she wasn't sympathetic, but he was a big boy and didn't need to be babied. She was impressed  
with Alyx's foresight; by sealing the wound with quicksilver, she'd not only reduced the amount of  
blood lost, but had also probably killed any potential germs and lowered the chance for infection.  
Once she had the wound open again and bleeding lightly, Claire carefully cleaned it -- with hisses  
and moans from Darien -- and, after debating for a moment, chose not to stitch it shut. A nice  
tight bandage, aided with a few butterfly bandages, should suffice and would reduce scarring to  
near nothing.  
  
"There, now that wasn't so bad, was it?" Claire peeled off her gloves, disposed of them, and then  
helped him slowly sit up.  
  
"Care to trade places and see how the experience feels for yourself, Keepy?" Darien gingerly felt  
along the bandage, noting it was tender and burned almost like a paper cut.  
  
Claire ignored his snide remark and returned to his side to check the monitor. There were four  
segments red. "Think you can wait a day or two?"  
  
"Yeah, unless the boss needs me for something else," Darien answered honestly. He really wanted no  
part of building up a tolerance any sooner than necessary.  
  
"Well, I wouldn't worry about that. You need to take it easy for a few days. Ripping that open  
would not be a good thing. You are officially on light duty as soon as I inform the Official."   
She patted him on the arm. "Take some Tylenol for the pain. Any redness or swelling, you call me.  
An infection would not be amusing."  
  
"Gotcha, Claire. Thanks." He slid off the table, then realized he didn't exactly have anything to  
wear. His shirt was a torn and bloody mess that Claire had thrown away after one look. Glancing  
down, he realized his khakis weren't much better off. Rather uncomfortable, too, since the blood  
had dried.  
  
The door to the Keep slid open then and Hobbes walked in carrying a duffle that Darien recognized.  
Behind him trailed Alyx, who was pocketing her mag card. "Thought you might like to change before  
going out in public. Don't want to frighten the neighbors." He tossed the duffle to Darien, who  
caught it with a grunt of pain as he pulled at the bandages holding him together. "So Keepy, will  
he live?"  
  
"A couple of days to heal and he'll be fine," she answered, smiling at Bobby, then she turned to  
look at Alyx who stood quietly over by the tank of piranha. "Alyx, can I help you with anything?"  
  
There was a smear of blood along one cheek and her shirt had a few as well. None of it hers. "Nah,  
just letting Hobbes in. You really need to get him a key." She glanced over at Darien, who pulled  
the shirt out of the bag, put it on, and began to button it. "See you guys first thing tomorrow."   
She didn't wait for any of them to speak and simply turned and left the room.  
  
"Huh. Guess she's had enough of us today." Hobbes commented, not really surprised at that she  
chose to just leave. Once the work was done, she usually took off, rarely spending time with them  
off duty. Things were better, but she still stood a bit on the outside and Bobby knew it. "Fawkes,  
hurry up and change. The boss wants to talk to us before we leave."  
  
"What about Alyx?" Darien asked as he shifted out of view. Claire moved to the other half of the  
lab, so as not to embarrass him more than necessary.  
  
Hobbes shrugged. "Eberts said you and me, partner. She must have given her preliminary report and  
turned over the package already. I was off getting you clothes."  
  
Darien came around the screen holding his bloodied pants with a look of dismay. "There is no hope  
for them."  
  
"At least they went out in service to your country." Hobbes knew that comment would go over real  
well, and the look Darien shot him confirmed this.  
  
Claire came over and took the pants from Darien. "I'll dispose of these." She went through the  
pockets efficiently to make sure they were empty. The pants were headed for the incinerator, and  
she didn't want to be responsible for toasting his keys or something similar.  
  
"I got everything, Claire, thanks." Darien picked up the duffle and headed towards the door.  
  
"Remember what I said, Darien." Claire was feeling a bit awkward standing there with Darien's  
pants in her hand.  
  
Hobbes took advantage of the situation. "Don't worry Keepy I'm not jealous. I know you got them in  
the line of duty."  
  
Darien walked out the door, trying not to laugh, while Claire attempted to bluster a comeback and  
failed miserably. Hobbes scooted out of the room a moment later, grinning. "Sorry Fawkes, I  
couldn't resist."  
  
"One of these days she's going to figure out you're not joking, and then what are you gonna do?"   
Darien was careful about teasing his partner about his feelings for the Keeper.  
  
"Do? Same thing I do now. Nothing. Company pier, my friend. That's one rule you need to learn."  
Hobbes kept his reminder gentle, knowing how defensive Darien could get where it concerned the kid.  
  
"Like there's anyone out there. What, should I try and date Sally in accounting?" Darien managed  
to keep his voice neutral. His lack of a life, love or otherwise, was a sore spot.  
  
"Nah, she's not your type. Now, Maria in data retrieval, she might be willing to put up with you  
for an evening or two." Hobbes was enjoying this. "She'd take one look at you and decide she  
needed to 'feed you up right'."  
  
Darien rolled his eyes. He wanted no part of one of those 'motherly' types.  
  
"I could give her your number." Hobbes offered keeping his tone serious.  
  
"Don't you dare."  
  
"And how would you stop me, o tall and gawky one?" Hobbes had paused to look up at the taller man.  
  
"I could send Claire a dozen red roses and a book of poetry in your name," Darien countered.  
  
Hobbes' face fell. "You wouldn't. Fawkes, don't joke about things like that."  
  
"Don't worry, Hobbes, your secret is safe with me," Darien reassured him, and was pleased to see  
the worry leave Hobbes' face. That had obviously been across that unseen line in the Claire teasing  
and Darien would be more careful not to cross it in the future.  
  
Opening the door, the two stepped into the Official's office. Eberts stood at his usual spot behind  
and to the right. It was obviously a staged pose; they had probably heard the voices in the hall and  
moved into position to be ready for their entrance.  
  
"Have a seat." The Official gestured at the chairs before his desk and waited for the two of them  
to sit. "I'll want your full reports in the morning; right now I just have a few questions."  
  
"Shoot," Darien said, wanting nothing more than to go home and take a dozen Tylenol to ease the  
ache in his side.  
  
"How did Miss Silver do, in your opinions?" The Official as leaning forward on his desk, his face  
blank.  
  
"Perfect. She tailed them all over the park, waited for the exchange, and then took them down as  
planned. Except for Fawkes here getting caught, everything went smoothly." Hobbes answered  
swiftly. As far as he was concerned, it was true. The kid had done a great job.  
  
"Did she use any of her other abilities?" Eberts asked, a pad of paper and pen having suddenly  
appeared in his hands.  
  
"Yeah, she trailed them while invisible -- held it for over an hour -- and then did that tele...  
teleki..."  
  
"Telekinesis," Darien supplied.  
  
"Yeah, that. Held Menkin and friends in place till I could restrain them." Hobbes paused,  
thinking. "That's it, as far as I know. She didn't really need it other than that. She waded in and  
helped Fawkes here fight off the bodyguards who found him, but that was just her fighting skills."   
Hobbes leaned back into the chair, satisfied he'd answered the question.  
  
"Fawkes?" The Official's attention swung to Darien.  
  
"She spoke to me mind-to-mind once, and I think she helped that knife she threw with her mind a  
bit." He was a bit reluctant to answer, wondering why they wanted to know. "She seemed a bit upset  
after everything was over."  
  
Hobbes nodded in agreement. "Just adrenaline let-down, most likely. All new recruits go through  
it," he assured his partner.  
  
"Good enough." The Official leaned back in his chair, causing it to creak loudly. "Nine AM  
meeting. Don't be late."  
  
Darien and Hobbes got to their feet as one. "Another job?" Hobbes asked.  
  
"Just be here. You will be filled in then," Eberts answered.  
  
Darien shrugged and opened the door, allowing Hobbes to go through first. "Want to get some  
dinner?" Hobbes asked him.  
  
"No thanks. I'm going to go home and pretend I don't have an eight inch gash in my side," Darien  
answered sounding tired.  
  
"Fawkes, the stories I could tell. That's just a scratch compared to some of the wounds I've  
seen." Hobbes got that swagger in his walk as he led the way to the lobby.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Machete, jungle, gangrene. I've heard that one." Darien was smiling, though.  
Hobbes was a fount of useful, if sometimes nauseating, information.  
  
"Go home Fawkes. Want me to stop by your place in the morning, make sure you didn't bleed to death  
overnight from your 'scratch'?" Hobbes was going to get a lot of miles out of this one.  
  
"Yeah. I have the feeling I'm not going to sleep very well tonight." Darien stopped next to his car  
and opened the door to toss in the duffle. "Thanks, Bobby."  
  
"It's what partners are for, partner." Hobbes looked up at him for a moment before walking off to  
his van.  
  
Darien shook his head and dug out his keys, wanting nothing more than to go home and collapse.  
  
  
  
Alyx had gone straight home after leaving the Keep and changed immediately into her workout  
clothes. She needed to straighten out a few things in her mind. As she began hitting the heavy bag,  
she let the events of the day run through her mind. Following Menkin from his house had been easy.  
Even following him through the park while invisible had been simple. Listening in on the meeting  
had been boring, but necessary. She had no need of the patently fake small talk they used to cover  
the deal they were making. Even she could hear the code phrases and words they had mixed into the  
conversation to verify who they were, but the exchange had to be made before she could legally  
arrest them.  
  
All that she had handled fine, even using her powers to hold them and the guns didn't bother her  
too much. It was her reaction to Darien being hurt that bothered her. Not that she had wanted to  
see him hurt or been unwilling to help. He had really needed the help; three on one just wasn't  
fair, even when the one was invisible. Darien had been pretty much backed into a corner with  
nowhere to go and had been bleeding like crazy. Yeah, he could have backed down towards her  
location under the covered walkway, but he was leaving an obvious trail. Someone really needed to  
teach him to defend himself, and it still bothered that that no one really had.  
  
What really bothered Alyx, though, was her violent reaction. She'd waded into the fray, wanting to  
blast every single one of them into oblivion, and had only just managed to restrain herself. She'd  
only beaten on them a little before Hobbes had arrived to tie them up.  
  
Alyx paused, panting. The bag was vibrating in place while she glared at it. Darien had so reminded  
her of one of her kids after a good scrape -- wanting someone to make it all better, but not wanting  
anyone to actually touch it, to help. She shook her head, not wanting to laugh. He had been badly  
hurt. Any deeper and she would have rushed him back to the Keep right away, and to hell with Menkin  
and his buddies.  
  
She started in with the kicks, alternating high and low, right and left. Her reaction when Menkin  
attacked Bobby bothered her most. She was starting to like Hobbes, to understand him and how she  
needed to work with him, but her vicious reaction had surprised even her. Menkin had come within  
inches, literally, of being quite dead. If she hadn't shifted the knife, it would have been  
sticking out of the back of Menkin's head instead of his shoulder.  
  
Bobby probably thought her case of the shakes and near-vomiting had been from adrenaline let-down  
-- the natural crash that occurred after something so dramatic -- but it wasn't. It was her  
near-successful urge to kill that sickened her. That wasn't her. She might have studied karate for  
years, but she had never used it against anyone until the Agency had stolen her. Had never used it  
to even defend herself when... when.... She pushed the thought away, along with the memories. That  
was not her anymore, but she wasn't sure she liked this new self either. This newfound penchant for  
destruction was not something she had ever thought herself capable of.  
  
She slowed to a halt, her breath rasping in her lungs and her heart racing. Her legs ached with the  
force she'd been using to kick the bag. She stood doubled over, allowing the sweat to run off of her  
and drip onto the floor. She gave in then and let the tears fall. She might have found enough peace  
to gain control, but she had yet to find herself. Alyx was still feeling a bit lost.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Darien was trying to not be a major wimp, but he would gladly admit he hurt like hell. Even after  
downing the recommended dosage of painkillers, he'd still had trouble sleeping, and now he was  
stiff as well. Showering had been an exercise in discomfort as he tried not to get the bandages wet  
and yet still get clean. He thought he'd done pretty well, but Claire had still tsked at him when  
he'd stopped in to let her check him over. She'd redone the whole thing and proclaimed it good  
enough, but told him to be more careful in the future.  
  
He'd just grunted something generic in reply and gotten out of there. Between lack of sleep and  
Hobbes' running commentary, he was not in the best of moods. He needed coffee, some serious  
painkillers, and six hours of sleep, undisturbed sleep.  
  
Walking into the Official's office, early for the meeting, he was greeted by Alyx who smiled at  
him. Okay, so maybe his day wasn't going to be all that bad. "What's up?" he asked, expecting  
another week of stake-outs or something equally as interesting.  
  
"A vacation," Eberts answered.  
  
All three burst out in laughter. Hobbes got control back first. "What's really going on?  
Terrorists? Gun runners? Maybe more chimp smugglers?"  
  
"No. A vacation. The three of you will be spending the next five days at the Snow Valley Lodge and  
Resort near Mammoth Mountain," the Official said, straight-faced.  
  
The three partners looked at each other. "Care to handle this one, kid?"  
  
Alyx shrugged. "Sure. So, what's the real reason? You sure as hell ain't doing this out of the  
kindness of your non-existent heart." Yeah, she and the Official were still pretty much at odds.  
  
"Look, you three have been going non-stop for well over a month and ended up working right through  
the holidays. Do you really want to argue about a vacation that the Agency is paying for?" The  
Official sounded a bit exasperated.  
  
"Argue? No, but we're a bit cynical these days," Darien answered for all of them.  
  
"Fine. Eberts, cancel the reservations. I'm sure there is something dull and boring we can find for  
them. Maybe a stake-out at the docks. Near a fish-processing plant." The Official's tactic worked.  
  
Hobbes jumped forward and yanked the file out of Eberts' hand. "Never mind, chief. We'll go play in  
the snow for a few days." He thumbed through the file and found airline info. "Flight is at one.  
We'll meet back here, share a ride." He looked over at Alyx and Darien who both nodded.  
  
"The Keeper will be joining you tomorrow evening." When Eberts saw the looks of total suspicion on  
their faces he added, "She has earned some time off as well."  
  
"You had better get moving. You don't want to miss your flight." the Official said in obvious  
dismissal.  
  
Out in the hallway, the trio looked at one another. "Are we buying this 'vacation' spiel?" Alyx  
asked.  
  
"Not for a moment. He put us on a private jet. Pack for work and vacation, just in case," Bobby  
answered, taking the lead as always.  
  
Darien tried to peek over his shoulder and into the file. "What else, Hobbes?"  
  
"Later, we need to get ready. We'll meet back here and share a cab to the airport." He glanced at  
them and Darien nodded. "Kid?"  
  
"I'll be here." She turned away.  
  
"Kid, you okay?" Maybe he'd been wrong about yesterday. Maybe it was more than the usual newbie  
jitters.  
  
"I'm fine, Bobby," she tried to reassure him. "Too bad it probably won't be a real vacation. I  
could use one."  
  
"Tell me about it," Hobbes agreed. "Come on, Fawkes let's see if the Keep will give you a booster."  
  
"Later, Alyx," Darien said as they went their separate ways.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  



	2. Chapter Two

  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Part 2  
  
They walked across the lobby of the Snow Valley Lodge, trying to look at ease. Bobby was especially  
wary. The private jet to the small airstrip a few miles from the resort was bad enough, but to have  
a limo waiting for them when they arrived had just been too weird, making him even more nervous  
than usual. When they reached the resort and were greeted by a banner proclaiming 'Welcome  
Attendees', he was positive the boss had set them up. But for what?  
  
As he was approaching the check-in desk, with Fawkes and the kid trailing along, he thought he  
spotted Dante Thermapolye, a notorious arms dealer from Greece, but he couldn't be positive. And  
anyway, what the hell would he be doing here? Hobbes pulled out the sheet with the reservation  
number on it and handed it to the guy behind the counter, who smiled obsequiously at him as he  
punched numbers.  
  
"Ah, Mr. Battagalia." The gentleman gave Hobbes a genuine smile then. "And your 'assistants', of  
course."  
  
He punched a few more keys, while Hobbes did his best to keep his look bland instead of showing the  
shock and confusion he was feeling. He glanced over at his two partners and was impressed that the  
kid had put on her poker face. Fawkes, though... Fawkes' eyebrows were trying to merge with his  
hairline, and he was about to open his mouth and blow the whole thing. "Could we hurry this up?"  
Hobbes demanded of the clerk, hoping to forestall Darien's questions.  
  
"Certainly, sir. According to this, your 'personal physician' will arrive tomorrow night?" At  
Hobbes' nod, he continued. "Your room is ready; Grant will escort you." He nodded to the bellman  
standing at attention nearby. "Some basic rules that ALL are receiving: No projectile weapons are  
allowed during the conference. They must be locked in either your room safe or the Lodge's safe.  
This facility is considered neutral territory and it WILL be enforced. Your 'assistants' may carry  
any personal weaponry that is less than six inches in length." He picked up a folder stuffed with  
various items, including what looked like badges, and Alyx took them from him. "The 'meet and  
greet' buffet is at eight tonight, and it is recommended that you attend. Enjoy!" He handed  
several room keys over to Grant, who already had their luggage, little as there was, stacked on a  
rolling cart. He gestured for them to follow.  
  
Darien was beyond confused. "Mr. Battagalia? What the hell is going on?"  
  
Hobbes elbowed him, hard. "Later," he hissed.  
  
"I take it he is new, sir," Grant said with a smug look.  
  
"Very, and not likely to last long at this rate." Hobbes glared at Fawkes, daring him to say just  
one word, one little thing, and risk screwing up whatever was going on.  
  
Darien glared right back. That elbow had hurt, but he did get the hint and kept his mouth shut.  
  
*Dare, be patient. Bobby is just as confused as we are,* Alyx sent, trying to reassure him he  
wasn't the only one wanting to know what was going on.  
  
Darien sighed and leaned against the wall of the elevator, doing his best to look bored and hoping  
Hobbes hadn't knocked anything loose when he'd nailed him in the side.  
  
They kept their silence until they were in their room, a mini-suite, and had the bellman, Grant,  
tipped and gone. "Kid?"  
  
Alyx gave the room a quick scan and found nothing out of the ordinary. "Clean. What the hell is  
IGMET-Con? And who the hell are we supposed to be?" She had gotten that much from the folder the  
check-in clerk had given them.  
  
"IGMET-Con? The Fat Man sent us to a convention?" With a quiet groan, Darien sank down into a  
chair in the sitting room.  
  
Hobbes had continued through into what must be the bedroom. "Two queens, but plenty of room." His  
voice became muffled. "Good lord, this bathroom is bigger than my apartment."  
  
Darien and Alyx wandered after him. The bedroom was huge, two queen beds separated by a good ten  
feet of space, and a massive big-screen television and entertainment center that matched the one in  
the corner sitting room. You name it, this room had it. There was a good sized balcony off the  
bedroom that overlooked the pool area and the snow covered mountains behind the resort. The  
bathroom was a hedonist's delight. Huge freestanding multi headed shower, jacuzzi tub that was darn  
near a spa in size, and double sinks with a built-in make-up table, including lighted mirror.  
  
"Hobbes, what are we doing here?" Darien asked, trying to decide if he had the energy to take  
advantage of that tub. This was a 'vacation' after all.  
  
"Let's find out." They went back out to the sitting area and Hobbes dug out the paperwork Eberts  
had given them. They had received orders not to read the file until they had arrived and checked  
in. He scanned over them and then proclaimed, "Holy shit." But he was smiling with glee. "I  
thought this thing was a myth. The chief has pulled off the scam of the decade."  
  
"Hobbes, think you could fill us in?" Darien muttered from the chair he had sunk into.  
  
"IGMET. International Gathering of Mercenaries, Entrepreneurs, and Terrorists," Hobbes informed  
them.  
  
Alyx froze, bent over, as she retrieved a bottle of water from the mini bar and turned to look at  
him.  
  
"These guys have conventions?" Darien didn't believe a word of it. It was just too...too ludicrous.  
  
"That would explain the weaponry rules. We're you're bodyguards, aren't we?" Alyx asked as she   
twisted off the top of the bottle and took a drink. She shivered and headed for the thermostat,  
dialing it for warmer. She was freezing in here.  
  
Hobbes looked over the dossiers that someone, most likely Eberts, had worked up for them. "I'm  
Vincent 'Vito' Battagalia. I deal in assassination weaponry. Guns shaped like pens, poisoned  
needles in shirt cuffs, and the like. Interesting. You," he continued, looking at Fawkes, "are  
Gary 'the Fox" Harding. You also act as my gopher."  
  
"Gopher? Like the Love Boat?" Darien wasn't sure he was too thrilled with that.  
  
"No, like on a movie set, I bet, " Alyx commented. "Go fer this, go fer that. But less-than-legal  
stuff, I imagine."  
  
Hobbes looked surprised. "You're right, kid. I'm impressed."  
  
"Jeez, Bobby, I passed that course. Who am I?" She might as well find out now.  
  
"You...are eye candy." When Alyx lifted an eyebrow, he chuckled. "You're the real bodyguard. While  
they all watch 'the Fox' here, you get to be the dangerous one. Umm, you are Angel 'the Kid'  
O'Connor. Pretty good how he got your nicks in there to use."  
  
"All right, I'll bite. Why are we here? It's not like we can just walk in and arrest the lot of  
them. We'd be dead in under thirty seconds." Darien shifted, his side aching again. This was not  
his idea of a vacation.  
  
"Intelligence gathering, only. Look, this 'convention' is held for the purpose of finding out who  
has what new toys to play with and who is looking to purchase what. The Keep will be bringing our  
'new merchandise' to show off." Hobbes read over some of the details. This was very dangerous,  
especially for the kid and Fawkes. If their covers were blown, things could get real bad real fast.  
Nevertheless, he could understand the boss not turning down this chance. If they did this right,  
they would have a heads-up on just about every terrorist attack, merc mission, and new toy of death  
and destruction from biologic to subtle poison, for the next year at least.  
  
"And how much back room dealing does he want us to eavesdrop on?" Darien asked, sounding resigned.  
  
"As much as you can stay invisible for." Hobbes grinned; this was gonna be sweet. "And you, kid..."  
  
She was shaking her head vehemently. "Uh-uh. No way. I am not going to go poking around in their  
heads. I have no wish to know how Mr. Biological tested his newest way of making things very dead."  
  
"Easy, kid, he just wants you to keep your radar on high, and if you do pick up on something, to  
check it out." Hobbes paused, watching her shake. He was still damn uneasy about having a mind  
reader for a partner, but he was beginning to realize that she liked it just about as much as he  
did. "Can you handle that?"  
  
She took a deep breath. "That I can do." She pushed away from the wall. "I'm going to unpack and  
try and get warm before this 'meet and greet.'" She looked over at Darien. "You want me to check  
your side?"  
  
He nodded and got to his feet. "Hobbes chose that side to elbow." He sat down on the nearest bed  
and squirmed out of his sweater and unbuttoned his shirt.  
  
Alyx squatted down next to the bed, noticing that there was no blood on the bandage -- always a  
good sign. "Did he nail it directly?"  
  
Darien yelped. "Your hands are freezing."  
  
Alyx chuckled. "I said I was cold." She carefully lifted the bandage and looked at the wound. "It  
looks fine. Take some Tylenol and take it easy for a while." She smoothed the bandage back down  
and stood to move out of the way. It was a bit of an awkward position, since she was essentially  
under his arm which he held up out of the way. As she stood, his arm ended up curved around her  
back. She smoothly stepped away.  
  
Darien gently took her hand and tried to warm it in his. "You okay?"  
  
She pulled her hand away. "Fine, just freezing my butt off. You need to go play bodyguard with  
Hobbes."  
  
"Huh?" Darien sat still as she reached over and buttoned his shirt for him.  
  
"Come on, Fawkes, I want to check out the lay of the land. Kid, we'll be back in an hour." Hobbes  
stood in the doorway of the bedroom, watching the two of them. "Did you kiss his boo-boo all  
better?"  
  
Alyx snorted and pushed past him. "You wish. Next time try not to reopen his injury. He won't be  
much use lying in bed bleeding. Claire didn't put stitches in for a reason, or do you want to have  
to answer to her?" She made a point of allowing her irritation to show, and Hobbes didn't miss it.  
  
"I got it, kid, but he was gonna blow the whole thing. I seriously doubt those are the regular  
resort workers." He watched as she grabbed her two bags and carried them back to the bedroom,  
where she chose a bureau and began to unpack.  
  
"They're not. But they've done this before." Alyx commented as she transferred the clothing from  
her duffle. She had packed comfortable clothes, as well as what she considered her working clothes.  
They would be perfect for the role of 'eye candy.'  
  
Hobbes nodded. "Figures. Not exactly the vacation we were hoping for." He turned back to Darien.  
"Let's go, Fawkes." He looked his partner up and down. "Think you can try and look dangerous?"  
  
"Another smart-ass comment and I will be dangerous, to you anyway," Darien grumbled as they walked  
into the hall. He could just make out Alyx laughing as he shut the door.  
  
They walked in silence for a few minutes, heading back towards the lobby. "Fawkes, you and the kid  
aren't..." He paused to choose his words carefully, not wanting to anger his partner. "...Getting  
cozy, are you?"  
  
Darien shook his head. "No, just friends." It was true enough as far as it went. "The two of you  
don't fight nearly as much anymore, should I be asking you the same question?"  
  
"Ah, no. The kid's okay." He paused, looking over the expanse of the lobby below from the head of  
the stairs. "You were right... about the partner thing."  
  
Darien actually looked surprised. "You just need to give her some time. It took a while before we  
got the hang of this partner thing."  
  
"She'll have it." He noticed a sudden expression of worry chase its way across Darien's features.  
  
"Hobbes, could any of these guys recognize you?"  
  
Hobbes really thought about it. "Not likely. Most of the ones here I probably know only through  
pics and their dossiers. Not from face-to-face meetings."  
  
"What about Arnaud? Might he be here?" Darien was starting to think this might not have been the  
best of ideas.  
  
"Based on the guys I've recognized, and there have been a few, he's too small fry. Now, if he had  
working quicksilver tech, maybe." Hobbes spoke from experience. This 'convention' had been a rumor  
for decades, especially since the cold war had ended. It was always by invitation only, always kept  
a secret until the last minute, and never held in the same country twice. The last one he could  
recall hearing rumors about had been held in Hong Kong, seven years ago. He really had to wonder  
how the Fat Man had not only found out about it but also gotten them invites.  
  
Darien relaxed marginally. "Into the fire, partner. Into the fire."  
  
Side by side, they walked down the stairs and into the enemy territory down below.  
  
  
  
Back in the room, Alyx finished unpacking, tossed the empty bags into the closet, and hung up her  
jacket. Even with the heat cranked up, she was still cold. She had packed the warmest clothes she  
owned, but since it was her first winter here she was still fumbling for an appropriate wardrobe  
for the weather. She was used to cool and dry at the worst, not the chilly dampness of San Diego or  
the numbing cold of the Northern California mountains. She hadn't been anywhere near real snow in  
years, and this bone-deep chill was making her body rebel.  
  
She dug out her one sweater and pulled it on over her T-shirt. Then she moved to the bed, pulled  
the artistically-folded blanket off the end and wrapped it about herself. And people came here for  
fun. Huddling on the bed, she turned on the television to see what she could see. After several  
minutes of flipping through various channels, she settled on the local weather/ski report and  
picked up the files lying on the table. First she went through the work-ups Eberts had done, making  
sure she had the details of who and what they were supposed to be.  
  
Then she reviewed the toys they were supposed to be putting on display. They were all very 'James  
Bond,' but actually all within the realm of reality. She was swiftly learning that the 'toys'  
created by Hollywood for the benefit of entertaining the masses were nowhere near as fantastical as  
the real things. Anything some writer could dream up had probably been thought of and created by  
some scientist years ago.  
  
The specs were a bit rough. Claire would be bringing the detailed info as well a the 'toys'  
themselves, but if asked, Alyx could probably fake it. Claire, although listed as 'Vito's' private  
physician, was actually playing the part of their group's 'Q', the creator of the nifty little  
assassin weapons. She'd been working for Vito for years and was arriving late since the real 'show  
and tell' didn't begin for a couple of days.  
  
Still listening to the weather, she moved on to the convention information. Tonight's meet and  
greet was exactly that. In theory no one knew who else had been invited, though she'd bet there was  
a core group who came to every one. They would work the room, get an idea of who did what, and plan  
who to talk to over the following days. There were even scheduled 'talks': "Bio-terrorism in the  
New Millennium"; "How to Hire a Mercenary"; "Choosing the Correct Assassination Tool"; "Better  
Fighting Techniques for Bodyguards." Okay, so that last one did sound kind of interesting.  
  
There were even things like, "Tracking the Old-fashioned Way" and "How to Remain Unseen in Any  
Conditions." The last two would be held outdoors, in the woods surrounding the resort.  
  
This was nuts.  
  
Alyx wrapped the blanket tighter about herself and focused back on the television for a few  
minutes. "Damn," she muttered. Getting to her feet, she took the file with their fake info and  
locked it, along with her badge, in the room's safe. It wasn't exactly stuff you wanted to leave  
lying about. So-called neutral territory or not.  
  
When the guys showed a little while later, she was still sitting wrapped in the blanket, trying to  
get warm.  
  
"Jeez, kid, it's a sauna in here." He proceeded to adjust the temperature back down to a  
comfortable seventy-two.  
  
Alyx sighed. "Well, anything interesting?"  
  
"Interesting? That is a Chinese curse, you know, and someone was really pissed at us." Darien  
tossed his bags on the other bed and proceeded to go through them. He was looking for something  
that would look intimidating, but still be comfortable. Every single one of the bodyguards he'd  
seen was wearing black, and most of them had leather as well. He'd packed the same stuff he always  
wore, just warmer versions. More long-sleeved shirts than tees. Several sweaters, his heavier  
slacks and jeans. Nothing that screamed 'big bad bodyguard.' "Crap," he muttered.  
  
"Fawkes, it's not that big a deal. The kid is the real bodyguard, remember. Dress comfortable and  
look mean and it'll be fine." Hobbes was going through and unpacking his bags as well. He'd  
already hung his garment bag, so he had sport coats, slacks, and dress shirts ready. In fact, he  
already knew pretty much what he was going to wear.  
  
Alyx moved over to help Darien, who had spread out a variety of items on the bed and was muttering  
to himself. "Bobby, what kind of impression do you want to make tonight? You want 'don't mess with  
us' or something more subtle?"  
  
Hobbes looked over at her. "How about 'dangerous, bordering on deadly.' Not quiet about it,  
either. Make it obvious."  
  
"Gotcha," Alyx said. She perused the selection, shaking her head in bemusement at the red shirt  
with the rope-like edging and horses on the back. She grabbed a black dress shirt and a pair of  
broken-in but not destroyed jeans. "Wear these with your black leather coat."  
  
"Alyx, you didn't see some of these guys. Black leather head to toe. MIB suits complete with  
glasses. Black fishnet muscle shirts." He shook his head. This was never going to work.  
  
"Darien, you're a thief. Act like one. Be watchful, wary. As bodyguards, we're supposed to be on  
alert so Mr. Battagalia over there doesn't have to be." She hooked a thumb over her shoulder at  
Bobby who nodded in agreement. "I've seen you go into sneak mode on jobs; just think that way for  
this and it'll work."  
  
"But the clothes..." He still didn't feel right about this.  
  
"Dare, you want to blend in, like a thief or assassin does. This," she pointed at her wardrobe  
choices, "will do that. Besides, no one will be looking at you once they see me."  
  
"What you got up your sleeve kid?" Bobby didn't want any more surprises than necessary.  
  
"Nothing you haven't seen before." Alyx turned to look at him. "I'll do you proud, boss." She'd  
let her voice take on the hint of an Irish brogue.  
  
Hobbes shook his head. "You first, Fawkes. You take the longest with that hair-care crap you live  
on."  
  
"You're just jealous, Bobby." The bag of stuff he pulled out impressed even Alyx with the size and  
variety. He went into the bathroom and shut the door behind him.  
  
Alyx moved to the doorway. "I'll leave you two to your unique version of male bonding." She  
paused. "Bobby, they're expecting a big blow here tomorrow. I called the Official to warn him, and  
he's going to try and get Claire out here earlier, but they were waiting on some items she needs to  
bring."  
  
Hobbes thought about it. There could be some problems if she was late, not the least of which was  
the lack of counteragent if she didn't show. Hard for Fawkes to do any invisible snooping without  
it. "Thanks, kid."  
  
Alyx shut the bedroom door and sat down in the common area, trying not to shiver. She hated being  
cold.  
  
  
  
When Alyx came out of the bathroom, both men stared at her for a long moment before finding the  
courage to speak. It wasn't that she looked bad or anything -- the exact opposite, in fact. She was  
wearing that revealing dark green outfit they had seen a couple of times before, but she'd added a  
few things to it this time. Such as a chain belt that hung around her hips, one long section  
trailing down the side of her leg. She had heavy wide silver bracelets at her wrists. The end of  
her braid was wrapped with another chain, with some decorative metal balls dangling down, making  
soft chiming sounds as she shifted. Her low-heeled boots were tipped in steel on both the toe and  
heel. It would be noisy on hard floors, but silence wasn't an issue for tonight. She'd done  
something to the scar over her hip so that it stood out against her skin, making it obvious to  
everyone that she'd been shot, and recently.  
  
The final addition she retrieved from one of the drawers her clothes were in. It was the butterfly  
knife Bobby had given to her recently, as a way of saying he was going try and accept her. Most  
women would not have reacted all that well to being given a knife as a truce gift, but she had  
understood and even asked him to show her how to use it. Which he had. Things had steadily been  
getting better between them ever since. She slipped the knife into the sheath built into one boot,  
wiggled her foot a bit to make sure it was secure, and stood up to face them. "Well?"  
  
Hobbes walked over and circled her, looking over what she was wearing very carefully. "Not bad. Not  
bad at all."  
  
"'Not bad?' Hobbes, is she supposed to be your bodyguard or moll?" Darien had seen the outfit  
before, but for some reason, here and now, it seemed inappropriate.  
  
"Fawkes, that is exactly right. Eye candy, remember?" Hobbes moved closer to her. "How many  
weapons do you see?"  
  
Darien shook his head. "Just the knife she shoved in her boot."  
  
"Bobby, you really need to start teaching him this stuff. The 'Fish had me take all those damn  
classes; why not him?" Alyx surprised herself by actually asking that question.  
  
"Apples and oranges, kid. There are reasons." He turned back to Darien. "You sure about the  
armament?"  
  
Darien shook his head. "Not anymore, but that doesn't mean I'm seeing it."  
  
"May I?" Hobbes asked Alyx, and she nodded. "The boots themselves. Steel tipped, fore and aft.  
Hurts like hell." He moved his hand. "The belt. Can be swung from the hip or undone and used as a  
chain. Good for snagging on things like necks." He lifted one of her hands, being very gentlemanly  
about it. "The bracelets. Wide and solid. Good for offense or defense." He motioned for her to turn  
about and she did so. "Her hair." He lifted the end of the braid. "Swung effectively, these beads  
will hurt. Take out eyes, maybe break a nose if swung hard enough."  
  
Hobbes turned to look at his dumbfounded partner. "Check out the guys downstairs. Most will have  
similar bits of subtle weaponry about them. Though the MIB types will probably have brass knuckles  
and such stuffed into their pockets. The rules on obvious weapons made this stuff inevitable." He  
backed away from Alyx, looking her over again. "The kid actually has an advantage over most. Most  
guys won't use a lot of these tactics because they're 'girlie'."  
  
"You can actually use all that stuff?" Darien asked Alyx.  
  
She nodded, realizing he was not very thrilled with this side of her. That's okay, neither was she.  
Walking over to him, she made few adjustments to his outfit. Smoothing the collar, shifting the  
jacket on his frame. "How's the side?"  
  
"Fine," he said a bit stiffly. Then he looked over her to Hobbes. "Can we get this over with?"  
  
"Yeah, let's." He handed each of them their badges and pinned his own to the lapel of his jacket.  
"Fawkes, you lead the way."  
  
"Bobby, I think I should go first." Alyx kept her voice quiet, not wanting to antagonize, but she  
had actually thought about it. "Look, I'm shorter than you and the most obvious. I'll clear the  
road. You can see over me and keep your eyes open for trouble. Darien takes the rear, since he can  
see over both of us."  
  
Hobbes mulled it over for a moment, then nodded. "I like it. We'll give it a try."  
  
Darien shrugged. "Whatever. Can we go now? I'm hungry."  
  
Alyx led the way to the door of the suite and opened it. "And what makes you think you're going to  
get to eat? You're there to guard his nibs here, not chow down." Alyx hid her grin as she heard  
Darien groan somewhere behind her. This was going to be...different.  
  
  
  



	3. Chapter Three

  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Part 3  
  
Alyx stood outside the Avalanche Room -- you just had to love the names of the meeting rooms here  
-- as security took their sweet time locating and slowly checking her badge. It wasn't like she was  
trying to hide it. She had clipped it to her pants, by her left hip, but apparently they had to  
spend several minutes making sure her cleavage was where it belonged before they were able to see  
it. It was Darien clearing his throat loudly and glaring as menacingly as he could manage that  
finally convinced them that she was really who she claimed. Other than making sure they wore the  
badges, the security duo ignored both Bobby and Darien and let them in without incident.  
  
Alyx slowed until Hobbes was close enough that she could easily speak to him by turning her head  
slightly. "What first? Slow circuit of the room?"  
  
"Works. I'll point out those you need to watch." Hobbes turned his head back to Fawkes, who was  
looking over the sea of black-clad bodies, interspersed with those who were obviously the ones with  
power. "Just pretend you're casing the place, Fawkes."  
  
Darien rolled his shoulders, trying to ease the tension that was quickly building there. Walking  
into a room full of people who would kill them in a heartbeat if the situation were different  
seemed like the stupidest thing in the world to do. But it was working, he saw. With Alyx in front,  
all eyes focused on her. Many stayed there, he noticed, even to the point of moving through the  
crowd to continue watching her. Hobbes was two short steps behind her, letting her move the crowd  
out of the way without blocking his view of those around them. Darien could hear Hobbes talking to  
her, but was not really listening himself.  
  
A couple of times someone tried to shove his way between himself and Hobbes, and Darien did what  
was necessary to keep that from happening, ignoring the glares and less-than-polite commentary that  
followed. Darien watched as Alyx made her way to the bar and ordered a drink, which she handed to  
Hobbes as if she performed this duty every day. He leaned over to her and made a comment, to which  
she nodded. Surveying the room, she struck off at an angle and they ended up at a table which she  
claimed as their own after glaring at the small-fry sitting there and chasing him away. Pulling out  
the chair that had its back to the wall, Hobbes slid into it and set his drink down with a look of  
disdain. She then took up position behind and slightly to the left of Hobbes and crossed her arms  
over her chest.  
  
"Fawkes, sit." Hobbes gestured at the chair to his right and, after a moment's hesitation, he did  
so. "It'll be a bit before anything interesting happens. Everyone is still feeling out the  
situation and debating how much trust to fake."  
  
"Hob..." Hobbes cut him off with a gesture and Darien remembered. "Uh, boss, trust? That's the  
last thing I'd expect to see in this group."  
  
"Neutral territory, Fawkes. The trust won't be real, but they'll pretend to make a sale or further  
the cause." He waved his hand and Alyx leaned over in response. "Go get Fawkes something to drink."  
  
"You sure?" She had an idea of what he was doing, but wanted to make sure now was when he wanted  
to try this.  
  
"Yeah, Fawkes here will keep unwanteds away." Hobbes assured her. She had to make her mark, and  
early, if this was going to work at all. He had noticed a few other females playing the role of  
bodyguard, but they were all the beefy wrestler types. The only dames had been hanging on the arms  
of the men who could afford to bring their play-toys with them on this jaunt.  
  
Alyx looked over at Darien, guessing he would need something stronger than beer. She lowered her  
voice. "I may have to hurt one or two to get it through their tiny minds."  
  
Hobbes chuckled. "I figured. Leave 'em able to work. I don't need their boss coming after me for  
damages, ya know."  
  
"Of course." Alyx straightened and gave Darien a wink that didn't do a thing to ease his tension.  
Seconds later, she had moved off into the crowd with eyes following her.  
  
"I don't like this, Ho... boss," Darien said quietly.  
  
"It's necessary." Hobbes leaned back as if unconcerned and sipped his drink. "We're among the  
newbies and we have to put ourselves in the pecking order. I want to be somewhere above the middle,  
but not so near the top we piss off the big guys. And there are some big guns here." He'd been right  
about Dante Thermapolye; he was here, with a dozen bodyguards and at least two girls to keep his  
lusts sated. He also recognized Fatima Kin Grotzi, a notorious femme fatale who specialized in  
assassinations. Today her hair was long and black, and Hobbes wondered if it would stay that way  
through the entire conference. Then there was Dreyson Fredericks, a scientist of some infamy who  
was expert at tailoring just the right killer bug to your every need. The kid's 'Mr. Biological.'  
Hobbes knew of at least three attacks that could be traced back to him, with deaths in the hundreds.  
  
"So how many are there here, really?" Darien asked, trying to give the appearance of casual  
conversation.  
  
"I'd say fifty or so. Nice variety. There are a few who will be coming to speak to us based on the  
info posted at the desk." Hobbes was having fun. It had been a long time since he'd had the chance  
to go undercover this deep. He wished the Official had told them sooner so he could have had more  
time to get into character, but given the nature of how this 'convention' was run, there really  
wasn't any way to warn. The boss had probably only gotten confirmation for the invite the day  
before they'd left.  
  
He saw the look on his partner's face. It wasn't blatant; in fact, only having known him for so  
long allowed him to notice. If Fawkes knew how well Bobby could really read him, he'd probably work  
on that poker face. "Just relax, Fawkes. Watch your back and don't challenge anyone you know you  
can't handle. Not that I think you'll have a problem. The kid, on the other hand..." A scream of  
pure pain echoed from across the room. "Ah, I've been waiting for that."  
  
  
  
Alyx made it all the way to the bar before encountering any real trouble. The bartender gave her a  
wicked smile when she placed her order, and then proceeded to take his time filling it. She  
suspected that he knew exactly what was coming, the same as she did. It took less than thirty  
seconds for one of the group of bodyguards who had been watching her to find his tongue and begin  
this little dance.  
  
"So, you're with Battaglia. Hope he's paying you well, 'cause, at a guess, you're worth it."  
  
Alyx turned slightly to look up at the owner of that voice. He was one of those linebacker types  
who had more balls than brain and who'd had his nose broken at least twice in the past. She looked  
him over, sniffed in disdain, and turned away.  
  
"Apparently she thinks she's too good for you, Jinx," a different voice spoke up, taunting the  
owner of the first.  
  
"Doubtful. She's just like all the rest as soon as she's horizontal with her legs spread wide." He  
stepped forward and ran a hand down Alyx's back to rest casually on her ass. "You just play at  
bodyguard 'cause your boss likes the tough types, now dontcha?"  
  
Alyx turned just her head, hoping to avoid any actual damage to the semi-humans gathered about her.  
"I am Mr. Battaglia's bodyguard and nothing more, and I would reccomend that you remove your hand  
before I do it for you."  
  
Those that had closed in around them broke out in harsh laughter, not believing her for a moment.  
He removed his hand, but only to place it on her shoulder and force her to turn about and face him.  
He held her in place with the one hand while the other came up to run along her face making its slow  
way lower until her was cupping her breast. "See, it's what you all want."  
  
"Oh, you are so right." She lowered her voice, sounded husky and slightly out of breath. She  
brought her hands up to lay over his. With a practiced motion she grabbed the middle finger of his  
hand and snapped it back as hard as she could, breaking it at the third knuckle with a wet snap  
that was audible to those around them and causing him to scream and drop to his knees. Two of his  
buddies -- they were dressed identically -- moved to intercept her. She handled one by snapping out  
a kick that connected with the side of his kneecap hard enough to knock it out of alignment and send  
him to the floor holding his leg and moaning in pain. The third guy she simply glared at and he  
stopped, his hands coming up slightly to show her he was backing off.  
  
"Now," she had leaned down to speak into the ear of the gentleman whose finger she was still slowly  
forcing backwards. "Do I really need to continue this demonstration by demonstrating my castration  
technique, or do I have you convinced that I'm not a whore?"  
  
He whimpered. "C...c...convinced."  
  
She released him and watched as he curled upon himself cradling his hand. Convention security  
showed then and surveyed the goings on for a moment before turning to leave. Alyx turned back to  
the bar and was handed the drink she had ordered. Moving away, the path cleared quickly and she had  
no problems getting back to the table. She set the drink down in front of Darien, who had a look of  
combined terror and relief on his face.  
  
Returning to her spot behind Hobbes, she said, "Expect a visitor shortly."  
  
Hobbes was forced to chew on the inside of his cheek to keep the grin off his face. "Fawkes, get  
that damn poker face up," he hissed, and was pleased to see it appear after a moment's struggle.  
  
"I'm fine, Dare," Alyx said quietly. "They're a little worse for wear, though."  
  
Darien picked up his drink and downed a fair sized portion. He nearly gasped in surprise. Tequila.  
He should have known, but once the burning sensation had passed, he found that it was just what he  
needed. A beer would not have been nearly strong enough. Picking it up again, he sipped at it this  
time.  
  
It took ten minutes, but a group eventually made their way out of the crowd to stand before the  
table. The group included one who was limping heavily and another with a hastily bandaged hand.  
"Mr. Battaglia."  
  
Hobbes waited a moment and then slowly lifted his head to look at the gentleman standing there. It  
wasn't anyone he immediately recognized, but it was obvious he was the one in charge, and based on  
his entourage he was one of those at the top of the pecking order around here. "Can I help you?"  
  
The man shook his head. "I wish to tender my apologizes to you and your employee." He looked at  
Alyx, who stared stoically ahead. "My employees were a bit overzealous in their efforts to  
ascertain the legitimacy of her position." His hand twitched, and a bottle of very expensive  
scotch appeared and was placed on the table before Hobbes. A gift obviously intended as an apology.  
  
"Kid," Hobbes said quietly.  
  
Alyx relaxed her stance slightly and looked at the gentleman who was offering the apology. "Perhaps  
you should teach them manners. What I do for Mr. Battaglia does not matter. I am a lady and should  
be treated as such."  
  
There was a sharp intake of breath from several of those with him, as well as others who were  
not-so-subtly eavesdropping on the conversation. The man she was addressing, however, merely tipped  
his head in acknowledgment. "You are correct. My apologies."  
  
She gave a slow nod in return, showing that she accepted the apology. He then refocused on Hobbes.  
"Perhaps we could discuss a bit of business tomorrow."  
  
"Of course," Hobbes said in agreement.  
  
With another moment to take each other's measure, they broke eye contact and he turned to rejoin  
the party at large. Darien let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding, and Hobbes  
chuckled quietly. "Jeez, kid you don't pick the small ones, do ya?"  
  
"Boss, he picked me. I don't appreciate being felt up, and I made sure he knew that," Alyx  
explained, hoping she hadn't screwed this up for them.  
  
"I'm not complaining, kid, you did good. And...." He slid the bottle of scotch over to where he  
could get a better look at it. He was impressed; the bottle was damn old and worth a small fortune.  
It had probably come from the gentleman's private collection. "This is a true attempt at an apology.  
He wants our business, and was afraid his people had screwed it up for him."  
  
Alyx turned to Darien, from whom she could feel an overriding anger. "Fawkes, I'm fine, really. I  
expected something like this. Hold it together until we're back in the room, please?" She had kept  
her voice soft. She wasn't angry at him or anything -- in fact she was touched that he was upset  
over this -- but this wasn't the time to appear weak or soft. That would get them beaten down.  
  
Darien nodded and then downed the remainder of his drink. They didn't have any real time to discuss  
it, anyway. The ice having been broken, so to speak, people began stopping by the table for  
preliminary discussions about the products they were offering up for sale. It was several hours  
before Hobbes finally decided they had made enough progress to leave.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
They didn't get back to the room until well after two, and by then Alyx was a walking popsicle.  
She'd done her damnedest not to let it show, but was more than thankful to get back to the room and  
change out of her working clothes. They looked impressive enough, but they did little to keep her  
warm. The room situation being more than a little awkward, she grabbed what she needed, took over  
the smaller half-bath off the sitting area, and changed there. She came out with a pile of clothes  
and jewelry, her hair hanging loose, and wearing a pair of dark blue leggings and a pale blue,  
long-sleeved flannel pajama top. She wrapped herself in a blanket and waited to be allowed back  
into the bedroom.  
  
It wasn't that the three of them hadn't bunked together before, but this time it was for a longer  
than typical period and some adjustment was needed. They'd been forced to share cheap motel rooms  
before, but this was the first time the stay had been beyond an overnight. Other things had changed  
as well: she was no longer the sullen, closed off, scared, and angry woman she had been in the past,  
and it made things different for her. Plus, she knew Bobby would be embarrassed as hell if she  
walked in on him dressing or even just walking around in whatever he wore to bed. That thought made  
her grin.  
  
A few minutes later, Darien poked his head out. "What are you hiding out here for?"  
  
She stood and picked up her stuff, walking past him into the room and turning off the lights as she  
went. "Oh, I don't know. Figured Bobby wouldn't want me to see him wandering about in his  
skivvies." She moved over to the closet to hang her clothes, then tossed the jewelry into a drawer.  
  
"Got that right, kid," Hobbes commented from the far bed where he was attempting to get  
comfortable. "Get some sleep. I want to hit some of the meetings tomorrow morning."  
  
"Morning being ten or later. I like the way these guys think," Darien added around a yawn. He was  
wearing a faded pair of striped pajama bottoms and a long-sleeved thermal top. He sat on the edge  
of the bed, watching Alyx as she moved quietly about the room. She looked so young in that getup,  
and cold. She shuffled about with the blanket wrapped tightly about her.  
  
"You wouldn't if you knew what they were really thinking." She shuddered at the mental reminder of  
what had been running through that one guy's mind before she broke his finger; he'd had every  
intention of following through on his commentary. She had gotten a bit more than she bargained for  
when grabbing his hand, though not quite as much as she usually got. It was, however, more than  
enough to cause her to come very close to actually castrating the bastard. He liked his women to  
put up a struggle, and didn't really care if they were willing or not.  
  
"You okay?" Darien asked quietly.  
  
"As I ever am." She added the blanket she'd been wrapped in to the pile on the bed, pulled the  
covers down, and slid under them, curling up in a little shivering ball of wakefulness. She wasn't  
really tired yet, but figured she could at least try and get some rest. "Night, you two."  
  
"Night, kid," Hobbes voice was a bit slurred as he drifted off.  
  
"Good night, Alyx, sweet dreams." Darien laid down and watched as the lights turned themselves  
off. He suppressed a wry grin. He still hadn't gotten used to things like that. It wasn't long  
before Hobbes was snoring softly next to him, but he found himself wakeful, as sometimes still  
happened. He had slept on the flight here; maybe that was why, at least tonight. Maybe it was fear.  
He did not like this 'vacation' at all. Going undercover he'd done for the Agency, but here he felt  
like he'd walked into a den of lions carrying around the carcass of a dead zebra and was just  
waiting for someone to shout 'free meal' and wake the entire pride.  
  
He tossed and turned for a while, alternately staring at the ceiling, the curtains, or the lighted  
numbers on the clock across the room. His side ached, though not nearly as badly as yesterday. When  
he'd checked it while getting ready for bed, it actually looked like it might be healing. He'd  
followed the directions Claire had given him and then done some slow stretches to loosen up. He  
really wanted to keep this one from scarring. He'd managed to get through prison without collecting  
any major physical reminders, and he didn't want to start now.  
  
He looked over at Alyx as she lay in the other bed. He could just make out the lump that was her  
body, and wondered if she was still awake.  
  
  
  
Alyx stared at the door to the room and debated getting up and going out to the sitting room to  
zombie in front of the television for a while. It's not like it was the first night she'd had  
trouble sleeping, but between being cold and the things running through her mind that just refused  
to stop, she was even more awake than usual. She could feel Hobbes sleeping peacefully, and  
Darien's mind was a calming presence, though she wasn't entirely sure he was asleep. She tried to  
avoid reading him at all costs; that stupid connection fed her too much information as it was, even  
through her shields. She had hoped that by gaining the control she needed that it would fade or even  
become nonexistent, but no. It crept in even past her shields and she was still trying to adjust to  
it.  
  
Huddling in closer, she tried to convince her body to warm up -- hell, to generate the heat it was  
supposed to -- instead of pretending to be a walking popsicle. Closing her eyes, she tried to  
convince her body to relax by doing one of her meditations that was supposed to help process  
information. She'd been doing this one a lot lately, but it had yet to offer the help she needed.  
It was the sudden presence of heat about her chilled body that snapped her out of it. She attempted  
to jerk away but the arms only held tighter.  
  
"Alyx, it's just me," Darien whispered. Hobbes would have a fit if he knew he'd crawled into her  
bed, even for noble reasons. The lecture he'd gotten after their first mission had burned his ears  
for days.  
  
"Dare, get the hell out of this bed," she hissed at him.  
  
"No. I could hear your teeth chattering from across the room, and you're freezing cold." He  
shifted his legs, entwining them with hers, at least until he bumped her feet. "Jeeze, have you  
been like this the whole time?"  
  
Alyx shivered. He was beyond warm, practically hot. "Yeah. Are you that warm 'cause I'm cold, or do  
you need a shot?" Alyx knew he didn't like Hobbes and the Keeper bugging him about it, but they  
were kind of out of reach right now and there was only so much she could do if the worst were to  
happen.  
  
"I'm fine. Claire gave me partial before we left. Provided she's not late, we'll be all set. You're  
just a fricking ice cube." Darien rested his chin on the top of her head and felt her shake in  
place. She just wasn't warming up at all. "You tired?"  
  
She wasn't sure how to answer. In some ways she was utterly exhausted, but her body wasn't really  
ready for sleep. Not yet, anyway. "Not really. Why?"  
  
He chuckled, not all that surprised at her answer. He'd lost count of how many times he had stopped  
by her place after midnight to find her awake in recent weeks. He knew she slept, just not as much  
as the rest of the universe, and he was still a night owl at heart. Having someone to hang out with  
encouraged him to pick up old habits he'd been trying to break for the Agency. Not that he minded  
going back to his old ways, not at all. "Thought you might like to talk. We've been so busy lately  
we haven't really had time for our late-night chats." True enough -- stopping by lately had  
usually just involved coffee and staring at the television, trying to decompress from another  
hellish or mind-numbing day of work.  
  
She sighed as his hands slowly moved across her body; stomach, hips, sides, arms. Trying to get her  
blood flowing again, but careful not to cross any of those lines. While they did have feelings for  
each other, she still couldn't allow it to go beyond friendship. There were days she regretted  
she'd allowed herself to open up as much as she had, but there wasn't any way she could go back  
easily, not without causing far more problems. She just couldn't bring herself to not care again,  
though she still didn't entirely trust. At least not they way she should. Some things were still  
out of her reach, thanks to the life she had led before. "I guess. Should we move? I don't want to  
wake Bobby."  
  
"Nah, just roll over." He felt her stiffen. "We'll do the sleepover thing and pull the covers over  
our heads. So long as we're quiet, he'll never hear us." He shifted to whisper directly into her  
ear. "I promise to behave." She started to shake again, but he realized it was with restrained  
laughter and not another attack of shivers.  
  
She did as he asked and she could feel his surprise and pleasure. She stretched out alongside him,  
her hands curled in front of her, against his chest, and her feet stuffed between his legs and  
making him hiss at their temperature, or lack thereof. He slid his hands under her pajama top along  
her back, increasing the contact and making her want to melt into his heat. If she weren't so damn  
cold and Bobby weren't just a few short feet away, she might be tempted into having a little fun  
with him. His first innocent question shoved those thoughts right out the proverbial window, though.  
  
"So what did you do for Christmas?" He had pulled up the blankets a bit before snuggling closer.  
She was still shivering, and if he didn't know better would have guessed she was covered in  
quicksilver she was radiating such cold. Her question about his state of sanity didn't seem so very  
odd now. He must feel like he was burning up to her.  
  
Alyx swallowed hard and closed her eyes. "I worked."  
  
Darien's hands stopped moving for an instant in surprise, and then picked the motion back up again.  
"Ummm, I know I got the day off. You didn't?"  
  
"I asked for work." Sensing his confusion, she decided to explain. "I really didn't want to spend  
the day sitting around my apartment wondering whether or not my kids were having a good day, if  
they had gotten what they wanted, if the dinner was okay." She paused and tried to push away the  
pain that surged to the forefront of her mind. "I couldn't even make the obligatory familial phone  
calls to my brothers. So yeah, I asked to work."  
  
"Sorry, I didn't realize... None of us did." He actually felt a bit guilty. They had been working  
their butts off in the weeks leading up to Christmas, so when the Official had given them Christmas  
Day off, he'd taken advantage of it and gone north to visit his aunt Celia. He, Hobbes, and Claire  
had gotten together one evening after work a few days before and exchanged small gifts. It hadn't  
really been planned or anything, things had just fallen into place on that day. He couldn't even  
remember if they'd even mentioned Alyx that day once work was over. No wonder she still felt alone.  
Not that he had forgotten her completely; there was still the package sitting on the night stand  
next to his bed, wrapped and everything. He had just never found the right time to give it to her.  
  
"Not your fault," Alyx said softly. "What did you do?"  
  
"Not much, visited my aunt up north for a few hours and then had to fly back home." He tried to  
play it down. He was able to visit family, and it had been nice to see her, even if it had cost a  
small fortune to arrange. He thought it was worth it. "New Year's?"  
  
"I watched some fireworks from the roof of my building. I spent the day trying not to think. The  
'Fish didn't have any work for me to do." Alyx shivered, still feeling more than a little cold  
even with him coiled sweetly about her. "My apartment got clean."  
  
Darien sighed. "You could have said something. I'd have been glad to take you out." Maybe he  
should have known, but he'd made plans with Bobby, and Claire had decided to join them at the last  
minute. Alyx had been more distant than usual, so they all just assumed she wouldn't be interested.  
They'd been doing that a lot recently, but Alyx never commented or seemed interested in what they  
did after hours. In fact, the only time he saw her after work was if he showed up at her place or  
ran into her down at the beach. It wasn't that she was unfriendly so much as solitary. This entire  
holiday season had gotten overrun with work. Hell, they'd been busy since before Thanksgiving, and  
just before that had been the trip across country to bring Alyx back. Apparently the holidays were  
a big time for the bad guys of the universe.  
  
Alyx was kind of surprised by his comment. "You had plans with Bobby. I didn't want to be a fifth  
wheel."  
  
"Claire came along, too. I would have liked to have you there," Darien said in a very soft voice.  
  
"Why? No one for you to kiss at midnight?" Alyx regretted the words as soon as they were out of  
her mouth. The surge of emotions from him was not what she needed right now. She wasn't likely to  
forget how he felt about her, even though he did try awfully hard to hide it for her. She just  
couldn't deal with it right now. "Please ignore that last statement," she mumbled.  
  
Darien waffled for a moment and then decided not to ignore it. "Actually, Bobby got the kiss. On  
the cheek," he amended. "How about you? Any handsome strangers show up to kiss you at midnight?"  
  
"Dare, be nice or I'll stick one of these ice cubes that used to be hands somewhere  
uncomfortable." Alyx wasn't sure whether to be amused or angry.  
  
"Hmmm, depending where exactly that was I might not mind all that much." He intended it to be  
playful, but it came out far more serious than he had planned.  
  
"Don't," Alyx snapped at a whisper. "It's time for you to go." She tried to push him away, but he  
only held on tighter. "Please," she pleaded, not wanting to deal with this.  
  
"I'm sorry. Let me get you warm and then I'll go." Darien was contrite. He didn't think she'd  
react quite like that. "Promise. Scout's Honor."  
  
Alyx relaxed slightly. "You were never a Boy Scout."  
  
"Funny, I have a shirt that says otherwise." He failed to mention that he'd picked it up at a flea  
market like half of his other clothes. One of his hands slipped back out from under her shirt and  
moved to tip her head up. "Friends?" He searched her eyes for a few seconds and then kissed her  
gently, not expecting anything in return. He was surprised when she responded for a moment, before  
pulling away and burying her face against his throat.  
  
"Ah, hell, Dare." She curled into him, trying not to shake. "Thank you."  
  
"Anytime. Try and sleep." His free hand curled against the back of her neck, which managed to feel  
just as chilled as the rest of her. He didn't like how sad she still seemed to be. With the holidays  
it was understandable -- he hadn't had much reason to celebrate his first Christmas after joining  
the Agency, either. Had pretty much blown it off, in fact, even if his reasons were a bit  
different. With his family, Christmas had been more a struggle than anything else, and once he was  
out on his own he'd celebrate it or not depending where he was and who he was with. The last  
Christmas he really remembered enjoying was with Casey. His life had changed a whole hell of a lot  
since then.  
  
There were other days during the year that bothered him the way Christmas and New Year's had  
affected Alyx. Mostly they revolved around his brother. He closed his eyes, not really in the mood  
to think about such things. Not when he had an armful of dozing woman who was finally beginning to  
thaw. He listened to her sigh as his warmth began to sink in and her shivers eased. He could feel  
her breath blowing lightly across his neck. Her hands were resting over his heart, which had begun  
to pound unexpectedly.  
  
"Ah, crap," he muttered softly, trying to convince his heart to slow down before he did something  
that would cause her to end up cold again. Sometimes being around Alyx was worse than his few  
encounters with Kate Easton. Working with Alyx on a daily basis allowed him to keep his unconscious  
and uncontrolled reactions to a minimum, usually. Then there were times when she did or said  
something and, forget it, his body was in control, and it often took all his willpower to not go  
see-thru in front of her.  
  
Tonight he was fast losing the battle. He'd wanted to have her in this position for a while now,  
though not for the sole purpose of warming her up. He was quickly learning he liked her a lot, even  
beyond the attraction he had first felt. He was hoping to earn her trust and maybe something more in  
the future. He was hoping to end up in this position again someday, only with far fewer clothes.  
That was the wrong thing to think about, though, as certain parts of his anatomy reacted, neither  
of which he could control.  
  
Giving up, he closed his eyes and pulled her close as the quicksilver flowed and quickly coated the  
two of them. Alyx grumbled a bit as the chill passed over her, but never actually woke up, for which  
Darien was eminently thankful. He really didn't want to have to explain either of his current  
problems. It took a couple of minutes and a lot of mental arguing with himself, but he was  
eventually able to drop the quicksilver.  
  
"Fool. Idiot," he chastised himself under his breath. Deciding she was warm enough, he tried to  
slide away, only to be stopped by her.  
  
"Dare? Problem?" She was only half-awake at best, enjoying feeling warm for the first time since  
arriving here.  
  
"Uh, just need to shift. Ummm, my side hurts a bit." Well it was the only thing he could think of  
that didn't involve the real problem.  
  
"Oh, sorry." Alyx moved away, feeling a bit foolish since he'd been lying on that side for who  
knew how long at this point. He released her reluctantly and shifted to lie on his back. "You can  
go now if you want. I'll be fine."  
  
Darien considered it but, in truth, he didn't want to. "Nah, don't need you doing the Mr. Freeze  
routine again." He grabbed her and pulled her closer. His side wasn't aching nearly as much now  
that his weight was off it. "Besides, I kinda like this. We should have sleepovers more often."  
  
Alyx chuckled sleepily and settled with her head resting gingerly against his shoulder. His arm  
curved around her as she sighed and moved her hand to lie on his stomach. "Ummm, maybe," she  
mumbled. "If you can behave."  
  
Within moments she was asleep again, and Darien was staring at the ceiling wondering just what the  
hell he was doing this time.  
  
  



	4. Chapter Four

  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
Part 4  
  
Alyx snuggled in closer to the warm body next to her and sighed. It was nice having someone to  
sleep with. Someone who hadn't thrown her in the bed the night before and given her another  
reminder of proper behavior and who was in charge. Someone who was apparently enjoying her  
presence, based on what his slow-moving hand was caressing. She moaned low in her throat, enjoying  
the sensation.  
  
That woke her completely, and she was out of the bed and across the room in record time. "Ah,  
hell," she muttered into the still dark room. Somewhere beyond the heavily curtained windows the  
sun was up, but she was betting the clouds were too thick to really let the light through. Rubbing  
her hand over her face, she had to wonder what the hell she'd been thinking last night. As she  
watched, Darien grumbled in his sleep and shifted, as if looking for her. He finally settled down  
with a discontented look on his face.  
  
For a moment she smiled and moved back towards the bed, wanting to curl back up with him. She took  
two steps, and then froze. Her mind roiled in confusion. Images from her still-too-recent past, of  
Darien holding her, of her wanting to kill Menkin to protect Bobby. Too many images. Too quickly.  
She groaned and bolted from the room.  
  
She found herself standing in the huge lounge area off of the lobby. There were fifteen-foot-high  
windows showing a beautiful winter scene, as snow was lightly falling already. There was a  
monstrous fireplace with a fire burning away merrily in it. Off to one side was another  
entertainment center, currently showing the local weather. Alyx didn't really see any of it; she  
just stood there shaking for a long moment, not sure what to do.  
  
Now was neither the time nor the place to go wonky, as Hobbes would say. Breathing in deeply, she  
moved over to one side in the dimly lit room and took up the starting position. Katas were always  
good for clearing the mind, and at his hour it wasn't like anyone would care. Katas and then some  
meditation. Anything. She would try anything to settle her mind, before she did something  
exceptionally stupid, like going to bed with Darien for real, or perhaps frying the next person she  
really got pissed at.  
  
She pushed those uncomfortable thoughts away and instead allowed her mind to go over the  
impressions she had picked up the night before. Ignoring the obvious sexual overtones that had been  
directed at her, she probed at what remained. Distrust, fear, some anticipation of events to come,  
recognition. Recognition? She carefully went over it again, and yes, it was still there. It wasn't  
recognition of her specifically, but it was directed at their group. This could be a problem.  
  
As she returned to her starting position, she heard someone clear his throat nearby. She'd known he  
was there, but since he had not posed a direct threat, she had ignored him. Opening her eyes, she  
turned to look at the man. He was one of the hotel staff and must have noticed her when she came  
down here.  
  
"Miss O'Connor, I thought you might like some coffee." He set down a tray with both coffee and a  
basket of croissants on a nearby table.  
  
A bit surprised, she moved into a slightly defensive stance. "Thank you."  
  
He gave a quick nod and then walked away.  
  
Alyx wasn't quite sure what to make of the situation but, deciding that coffee was never a bad  
thing, she moved over to the chairs and sat down. She was already feeling cold again, so she  
grabbed another of those artfully draped blankets to wrap about herself, turned up the volume on  
the television, and sipped at the coffee. She had about fifteen minutes of peace before she sensed  
someone behind her. She ignored him at first, in hopes he'd go away, but finally gave in and spoke  
up without turning to look at him.  
  
"Do you need another demonstration?"  
  
He carefully made his way into her line of sight. He now had an odd-looking cast on his hand, which  
made him look like he was permanently flipping the bird. "No. In fact you were quite impressive." He  
moved to sit across from her. "There aren't many woman like you in the business. Hell, there aren't  
many women in the business, period. I..." He actually dropped his head and looked embarrassed,  
which surprised Alyx, considering she knew what he'd intended to do to her. "You could have killed  
me, and would have been justified in doing so. I owe you a debt." He got to his feet and held out  
his hand for her to shake.  
  
Alyx didn't trust him for a second, so took the time to give him a light scan. She was amazed to  
discover he was sincere. So it was with only the slightest bit of hesitation that she shook his  
hand. "I will claim that debt one day," she said to him.  
  
As he released her hand, he grinned. "I hope so."  
  
After he left, Alyx shook her head and decided to ask Bobby about this. Maybe there was some code  
for bodyguards she didn't know. With a sigh, she focused back on the television and sipped her  
coffee.  
  
  
  
Darien was jerked awake from a very nice dream involving Alyx, a back rub, and warm oil, by the  
bellowing of his partner.  
  
"Fawkes, what the hell are you doing in the kid's bed? Didn't we have this discussion once  
before?" Hobbes was pissed. Bad enough they were stuck sharing the same room when he knew that  
Fawkes had a thing for her, but you'd think he'd be able to restrain himself for once.  
  
"We didn't do anything," Darien stated as he cracked his eyes open to look at Hobbes. Based on that  
look, the lecture was going to be long and arduous. He tried to forestall it. "Hobbes, she was  
freezing her ass off and couldn't sleep. I was trying to get her warm and, like an idiot, fell  
asleep instead of getting up once she was."  
  
Hobbes eyed Darien carefully. Some days he was better at lying than others, but maybe he was  
telling the truth this time. The kid had been all but chattering her teeth during most of the  
previous evening, and he'd seen her waddling around the room in a blanket, so there was at least  
some truth in what Fawkes was saying. "No excuse. You do not belong in her bed. For any reason."  
  
For a moment Darien was unaccountably angry. It was none of Hobbes' business who he slept with, or  
when. Or, for that matter, if he had done anything more than 'sleep.' Darien turned the situation  
around on him. "What if it had been Claire? Would you have left her there awake and shivering?"  
  
"Damn it, Fawkes. I have some honor. I'm not about to seduce her because I have no control over my  
hormones," Hobbes snarled at him, offended that he'd mentioned Claire at all in this situation.  
  
Darien was stunned for all of a instant. Hobbes -- Bobby -- thought that little of him? After all  
this time? He had thought they knew each other better by now. "I have no honor, huh?" He climbed  
off the bed and stalked towards his 'partner.' "Nice to know how you really feel about me,  
partner. If I were really like that, do you think anything would have stopped me? That I would have  
waited one moment longer than necessary?" He had backed Hobbes into the wall and dropped his voice  
to a bare whisper. "I deserve better than that from you."  
  
Hobbes watched Darien turn away and stalk towards the door. "Fawkes, damn it." Hobbes followed and  
attempted to stop him. "Fawkes, you have to leave her alone."  
  
"It's none of your business. For once, just stay the hell out of my life." Darien snapped. He had  
really hoped his days of having Hobbes looking over his shoulder were over, yet here he was getting  
a lecture on proper behavior. Was the man never going to understand that he was not some  
straight-laced, by-the-book agent, and never would be? He was not some trained animal that rolled  
over on command; he had a mind of his own and would do what he wanted, when he wanted.  
  
It was a hurriedly stifled sob that got their attention. While they had been screaming and fuming,  
Alyx had come in. She'd been assaulted by both their heated words and their raging emotions, and it  
made her feel guilty. "Don't do this, please."  
  
"Alyx, it doesn't concern you." Darien tried to keep his voice in control, but he was still angry.  
  
"Yeah, kid. This is between me and Fawkes, here," Hobbes added, not wanting to be outmaneuvered.  
  
"Bullshit!" Alyx snapped. "It's all about me, and has been for weeks -- hell, months. I'm sorry. I  
never wanted any part of this shit, but I'm stuck with it." She took a a deep breath, then  
continued in a softer voice. "And it's screwing up the two of you, now. I'll meet Claire when she  
comes in and leave on the plane." She walked between them and into the bedroom.  
  
Darien and Hobbes glared at each other for a long moment, and much to both their surprise it was  
Hobbes who broke first. He turned away and went after her. She had moved quickly; her bags were  
already on the bed and she was well into packing them.  
  
"Kid." She ignored him and continued to get her stuff. "Damn it, kid." He moved over to her and  
grabbed her arm, which she shook off with a snarl. He stopped her again, spinning her about so that  
she was forced to look at him. For one instant, he got a glimpse of just how upset she was. He was  
sure she was about to fling him into the nearest wall, but it didn't happen. Instead, she just  
stood, shaking in place. Even through her shirt, he could feel how chilled she was. At least Fawkes  
hadn't been lying about that.  
  
"Kid, it has nothing to do with you." he said quietly.  
  
"Bullshit," she repeated, though without the force of before. "Do you really think I can't tell?"   
She tapped the side of her head. "I'm closest to the two of you. We work together. I'm always aware  
of you; I have to be. I... I won't be the cause of this." She pulled away from him as his hold  
loosened on its own. "You don't fight over Claire this way."  
  
"Alyx," Darien said from the doorway. He was still angry at Hobbes, but also knew she was right. To  
a degree anyway. He could tease Hobbes about Claire because he knew there was very little chance  
Bobby would ever do anything about his feelings. He could not say the same about himself and his  
feelings for Alyx. Hell, if she gave him the slightest hint that she was willing to take that step  
beyond friendship, he would be have her in bed in a heartbeat. He could argue that they were not  
the same as Bobby and Claire, that they came from the outside, had a different perspective. Could  
explain that the Official intended for this to happen, for he and Alyx to become attached to one  
another. But it didn't matter, even if it was all true. He and Bobby had to work this out, somehow,  
and not lose their new partner in the process. "Alyx, we'll work it out."  
  
Alyx shook her head, not believing him. She could feel the anger seething below the surface of both  
of them. Even with her shields reinforced against it, it still got in. It surprised her that she  
could not block out Bobby's emotions; he must be at least partially broadcasting at her because she  
was involved. "I don't want to be responsible for screwing up something that took nearly two years  
to build. The 'Fish doesn't really need me and Darien to work the same cases. I'll go back and tell  
him that. I should have ages ago." She stood there shivering, her body deciding to be cold again.  
  
"No, kid," Hobbes said putting force behind his words. "I can't let you leave. We need you here. On  
this job." Hobbes moved closer to her, but stayed just out of reach. "If Claire doesn't show, I  
need you and your skills to find the intel we need."  
  
"You managed just fine before I came," she pointed out.  
  
"Not stuff like this," Darien said, moving into the room. "There is no way we could pull this off  
without you. Even with Claire."  
  
She looked from one man to the other and closed her eyes. She was so tired of being confused, of  
being bounced from one emotion to the other, of wanting to strike out at people who hurt her or her  
friends.  
  
Hobbes looked over at Darien, who hadn't any more idea than he what to do. Hobbes' cell phone rang  
then and he moved to retrieve it from the bureau. "Help her, Fawkes."  
  
Darien went over to the bed, retrieved the blanket she'd been wearing yesterday, and wrapped her in  
it. Glancing in Hobbes' direction, he saw he was deep in conversation, most likely with the  
Official, so he steered Alyx out of the room and got her to sit on the sofa. Squatting in front of  
her, he took one of her hands and tried to convince it to warm up. He had the oddest feeling that  
it was more than just not being used to the cold that was causing this. "Talk to me."  
  
She sighed and looked at him. "What do you want to hear? I'll be glad to tell you."  
  
He shook his head. "What's between me and Hobbes doesn't involve you." When she opened her mouth to  
speak, he stopped her with a look. "Even if it is about you, it's something we have to work out.  
It's not your fault, really."  
  
"Stop trying to cheer me up, and stop lying to me," Alyx said to him.  
  
He looked at those amazing silver eyes of hers and decided then and there that he was not going to  
lose her, even if she never became anything more than a friend and partner. Somehow he had to keep  
both of them. "Do you like Bobby?"  
  
Alyx wasn't sure where he was going with this, but answered. "Of course. I never hated him, just  
the situation and myself."  
  
"How about the Keep, Claire?"  
  
"Yeah, I like her. I wish I had more time to spend with her; she's a very smart person." It was  
more than that, but it was enough of an explanation for him.  
  
He nodded. "And how about me? Do you like me?" One of his hands came up to rest against her cheek  
and she closed her eyes.  
  
"I... you know I do," she whispered. That was putting it mildly.  
  
"Then don't bail on us. Not now." So maybe he'd been hanging out with Bobby too much, but it was  
true enough. You don't bail on your partner, or your friends.  
  
"He's right, kid, especially now," Hobbes said from the doorway. "That was the Chief. Claire will  
be arriving in a few hours. Fawkes, you will meet her. I've already arranged a ride with the  
staff." He turned to Alyx. "Kid, we've got meetings to make. Spying to do. You in?"  
  
"Bobby, three months ago you wanted no part of me. I'm offering to walk away, and now you want to  
stop me. Excuse me if I have a hard time believing it," Alyx said in a tired voice.  
  
"Kid, I was wrong," Hobbes admitted. He could be a bit stubborn at times, but once he'd decided to  
accept her, he had never regretted it, and he was continually being impressed by her. He looked  
from her to Fawkes, who had hastily dropped his hand from her face, and realized she was good for  
him. He didn't seem to be spending nearly as much time worrying about getting away from the Agency.  
Yeah, there were days he bitched and moaned about being a lab rat, and some days he was even  
justified, but now... now he seemed to worry more about 'them.' How 'they' were lab rats. How  
'they' were treated. The same things he did with Hobbes when they complained about the lousy hours  
and the lousy pay. Only she and Fawkes got together, though rarely, after hours. He knew Fawkes  
went over to her place a couple nights a week, but he never stayed long and never stayed over. She  
had never joined the rest of them for dinner, a night out, or anything, and he realized that might  
be because they had never asked her.  
  
"Can you work with me on this?"  
  
"If my teeth will stop chattering long enough. Gods, I hate being cold." Alyx shivered as they both  
laughed. "Just stop fighting about this, please."  
  
"Kid..."  
  
"Dare and I are friends, and he was being kind last night, nothing more." Alyx faced him, daring  
him to challenge her.  
  
Hobbes shook his head and let it drop. It was hard to argue with her when she was almost as blue as  
the pajamas she was wearing. "We'll deal with it later, all right?" She nodded. "Fawkes, crank the  
heat. I'm going to shower." He looked at the two of them and sighed. "Get her warm." He backed  
into the bedroom and shut the door. If he didn't see it, they weren't doing anything wrong.  
  
Darien looked back at Alyx, who was trying not to shiver. He knew one way to get her warm, or so he  
hoped. Taking her face in his hands again, he leaned in and kissed her. She resisted at first, but  
without pushing him away. When his tongue traced across her lips, requesting access, she groaned  
deep in her throat and opened up to him. He could taste the coffee she'd been drinking as his  
tongue fought a losing battle with hers. When he pulled away at last, he was breathless and trying  
to keep from quicksilvering.  
  
"We can't do this anymore, Dare," she said softly, and that was more than enough to solve his  
almost-problem. "I just can't." She had moved close to him, her face resting lightly alongside his  
so that only he could hear her. "My reasons still haven't changed and you know it."  
  
Darien closed his eyes and slid his arms about her for a minute before releasing her. "Is that the  
only reason. The 'Fish?"  
  
She shook her head. "I have a past, Darien, just as you do. I'm still trying to deal with mine."   
She smiled at him. "I'm still trying to figure out a few things about myself, and it wouldn't be  
fair to either of us..." She trailed off, hoping he'd understand.  
  
"The ole 'just be friends' line," Darien said with a grin.  
  
But she took his commentary seriously. "One thing I can can safely say is that we'll never be  
'just' friends." Now it was her turn to kiss him lightly, before giving him a wry smile. Then she  
slid one of her cold feet under his shirt and placed it squarely on his stomach.  
  
"Ah, c...c...crap," he stuttered as he tried not to fall backwards. "That is cruel."  
  
Alyx laughed. She hoped that they would be able to solve this problem -- all of them.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Are you sure they can land in this?" To Darien, it was a blizzard outside; he didn't see a whole  
lot of snow in San Diego. The snow was falling steadily and the wipers kept up their slow motion  
even though the limo was parked. He rubbed his arms as if chilled, though the interior was more  
than warm enough.  
  
"Mr. Harding, look at the snow. It's falling straight down, and we can still see the entire air  
strip. If the wind was blowing there would be a problem, but like this it'll be pretty easy." The  
driver turned back to look at him, making it plain he'd dealt with conditions like this before.  
There was even a plow giving the landing strip the once-over. "In a few hours though, nothing will  
be moving. This storm is supposed to get bad and then sit here for a few days. Great for the  
resorts, but awful for those of us who have to drive in it."  
  
Darien nodded in agreement and was about to say something else when the radio mounted on the dash  
crackled to life. "Plunkett, they're coming in now. ETA seven minutes."  
  
The driver, Plunkett, responded. "Roger. We'll meet them at the gate."  
  
"Gate?" Darien asked, noting there was nothing but the airstrip and one lonely hangar, which was  
used to refuel the planes, make any repairs, and store that plow.  
  
Plunkett laughed. "That's just what we call the pick up spot. As soon as the plane has taxied over  
by the hangar, I'll drive over and we'll get the good doctor."  
  
It was just a few minutes later that the plane appeared out of the snow filled sky and landed with  
no problems Darien could see. It slowed and came back in their direction. As soon as it had stopped  
Plunkett put the car in gear and drove over, parking as near as was reasonable. Both men got out of  
the car and walked over to the plane just as the door opened and the stairs came down. Claire was  
handed out by a gentleman on the plane and was at Darien's side in seconds.  
  
"Hey, doc," Darien said as he escorted her and the oversized briefcase she was carrying towards the  
waiting limousine.  
  
"Mr. Harding," Claire said very precisely, partially to remind him and partially to let him know  
that she knew what was going on.  
  
She turned around as the trunk as well as her two suitcases were carried off the plane. "Careful  
with that trunk, gentlemen."  
  
"Yes, ma'am," one of them said, but she watched them carefully until it was secured in the trunk of  
the limousine.  
  
"Can we get in the car now doc?" Darien asked. He was starting to feel as cold as Alyx out here,  
and he couldn't help but notice the wind starting to pick up.  
  
"Yes, of course." Claire said. She slipped into the vehicle, followed by Darien.  
  
Plunkett was behind the wheel a few minutes later and they were on the way back to the lodge. "Do  
you wish privacy, sir?"  
  
It took Darien a second to realize he was the one being called 'sir'. "Ummm, yeah, if you would."  
  
"Of course, sir." The glass partition between the front and rear seats slid upward, giving them at  
least the illusion of privacy.  
  
Darien leaned in close to Claire and slid one hand up into her hair. She tried to pull away. "Fake  
it, Keep. I don't exactly trust our driver," he whispered.  
  
"Ah, yes," she whispered back, and slid one of her hands up along his chest. "I'm Doctor Regina  
Curtis, by the way."  
  
"Hmmm. I was wondering," Darien commented as he pulled back and gave her a light kiss, which she  
returned with obvious discomfort.  
  
"And how often do you 'fake' stuff like this?" she asked as she backed away slightly.  
  
"Oh, Alyx and I have used the 'make-out ploy,' as we call it, a few times. You should see her and  
Hobbes do this. It's amusing." Darien pulled her close so that she was leaning against his  
shoulder. She was more than close enough to hear what he was saying, with little chance of their  
being overheard unless a bug was planted right next to them. He casually slid his right hand into  
her lap and turned it palm up.  
  
Claire, being the smart lady that she was, took his hand into her own and, after some creative  
finger work, got a good look at his monitor. "Have you been being a bad boy again?"  
  
"When am I not?" Darien countered in the same teasing tone. "Had to deal with an unexpected cold  
spell."  
  
"I think I might have something to warm you up." She set his hand back down but kept their fingers  
intertwined. "How is that side of yours?"  
  
"Been better. Been worse. I'll let you strip me to look at it later." He was trying not to laugh at  
the somewhat stunned look on her face. "And I can guarantee I won't be the only one happy to see  
you, doc."  
  
"You..." Claire sputtered. "Behave."  
  
"But how often will we get a chance in the back of a limo?" Darien commented, right up against her  
ear, and she shoved him away with a laugh.  
  
Darien hung his head and did the puppy dog eyes at her.  
  
"If you can behave, I'll give you a very special treat later." Claire was torn between annoyance  
and delight at the pure silliness of this. She knew the situation was serious, but with Darien it  
was difficult to not find it a least a little silly.  
  
For an instant he was tempted to ask for something involving a massage, but decided that would be  
going a bit too far in this case. "I suppose I can wait. The tub will easily fit the two of us."  
  
Claire raised an eyebrow. "I prefer showers."  
  
"I know," Darien mumbled without thinking.  
  
"What did you say?" Claire sounded more than a little suspicious. She knew of at least one  
occasion when he had followed her around, and she had no idea exactly how much he had learned from  
that adventure.  
  
"I said, 'I thought so'." He sighed with relief when she let it go at that. He pulled her close  
and they did the cuddle thing until they arrived back at the lodge.  
  
They went through the process of getting her checked into their room and provided with an  
information packet and badge for the convention. Then, with Grant leading the way, they made their  
way to the room. Once they had banished Grant with a hefty tip, Claire waved for Darien to sit  
down. Opening the briefcase, she withdrew a vial of counteragent and a syringe and began the steps  
necessary to give him his shot.  
  
"So, care to explain this cold spell that cost you two segments?" Claire asked as she put away the  
equipment. She stored the remaining counteragent in the fridge in a special locked container; no  
need for nosy maids or overeager invisible agents to get access. "I know you were not supposed to  
do anything that required the gland before I arrived."  
  
"Uh, no. I don't think I want to." When she gave him the evil 'I'm the Keeper' glare, he tossed  
out a generic explanation. "It wasn't planned, if you know what I mean."  
  
Claire sighed and looked down at him. "Off with that shirt. I need to check that wound of yours."  
As he complied, she softly asked, "Was it Alyx by any chance?"  
  
Darien froze in an awkward position with the T-shirt stuck covering his face. It took him a moments  
struggle to get moving again, and in the end Claire was forced to help. Once the shirt was actually  
off, he found his voice. "Why would you think that?"  
  
Claire had put on a pair of latex gloves and was removing the bandage. She paused to get him to  
shift more sideways so that she could examine the entire length of the cut. She looked up at him;  
holding his arm stiffly out of the way and a touch of embarrassment on his face. She knew the  
embarrassment wasn't due to his current half-naked condition. She'd seen him in far less clothing  
over the many months they had worked together, and not once had she managed to garner a reaction  
beyond irritated discomfort. They had become friends, to a degree, but nothing beyond that, for  
which she was eminently thankful in many ways. Yes, she was the Keeper and all that implied, but  
she was still glad he had not become attracted to her that way.  
  
"Darien, I've seen the way you look at her sometimes, and you've admitted in the past that you like  
her. I seriously doubt that has changed."  
  
Darien shook his head slowly. "Doesn't matter. You'd think I'd have control by now," he said at a  
soft growl.  
  
Claire suppressed a chuckle and forced herself to examine the wound until she was sure she had  
control of her voice. "Darien, it's not like you've had much of a chance to be in this situation."  
  
"Claire, I really don't want to talk about this. It's handled." Darien didn't need her getting a  
cheap thrill about his control issues.  
  
She realized it was somewhat embarrassing for him, but she was his doctor as well as his Keeper,  
and any information about how the gland functioned could be useful for her research. "Darien..."  
  
"Drop it, Keep," he snapped, having had enough. "Did I mangle it, or what?"  
  
She carefully cleaned the surface and began to apply a fresh covering bandage. "No. It's healing  
quite well. How's the pain? Stiffness?"  
  
"Sore, dull-ache sore, and yeah, it's stiff. Not too bad, though," he answered as she moved away,  
allowing him to lower his arm. "Alyx has been keeping an eye on it."  
  
Claire peeled off the gloves and moved to dispose of them. "Well, I did ask her to."  
  
Darien nearly got stuck again, this time while trying to put his shirt back on. "Ummm, huh?"  
  
"Alyx has been taking all those classes, as well as doing field work with with you guys, you know  
that right?" Darien got the shirt over his head and wiggled his remaining arm in before nodding.  
"Because of the special circumstances, I did her first aid training. She learns very fast. Ran her  
through the six-week course in ten days."  
  
Darien got to his feet, not surprised that Alyx had learned that fast. He'd watched her over the  
months and seeing how fast she went from knowing next to nothing to being practically Bobby's equal  
scared him. He'd been forced to learn the hard way, tossed into the pool headfirst without knowing a  
single thing. Somehow he had learned to swim, though some days it was all he could do to tread  
water. He knew from late-night conversation with Alyx that she was taking as many as four different  
courses at a time, along with whatever work the Official tossed at her.  
  
Hobbes had gotten pissed a couple of times when she had showed up late for a mission, but soon  
dropped the matter. At a guess, the 'Fish had explained the situation or, more likely, told Hobbes  
to shut up and soldier. Darien had to admit that Alyx had a point when she wondered why she was  
getting the extra training and Darien was still having to fumble along. Maybe he should back Hobbes  
into a corner sometime and get some answers.  
  
"Come on, Doc, let me show you the place." He grabbed one of her bags and carried it into the  
bedroom.  
  
"We're sharing a bedroom?" Her tone made it obvious she was not thrilled with this.  
  
"Yeah, I can't remember the last time we've haven't shared a room on an overnight. At least since  
Alyx showed he hasn't been making us sleep in the van." He set the suitcase down on the bed she  
and Alyx would be sharing. "Well, except that one time, but that wasn't a planned overnight."  
  
"He bunks the three of you together all the time?" Claire seemed to be having a hard time with  
this.  
  
"Always. No big deal. We are partners, and the Official is a cheap bastard." Darien wasn't sure he  
understood why she was having a problem with this. "Besides, on this trip we're supposed to be Mr.  
Battaglia's bodyguards. Hard to do that from another room."  
  
Claire shook her head and began to unpack. "I'm going to have to talk with him when we get back."  
  
"Claire, it's not a big deal, really," Darien tried to reassure her. Even if things weren't perfect  
off-duty between Alyx and Bobby, on a job they kept their problems to themselves and got the job  
done. The blow-up earlier had been an aberration. They might sometimes disagree about methods to  
complete a mission, but they rarely argued about personal stuff.  
  
"Actually, Darien, it is a big deal. Even if you are partners. Think about what Alyx can do, what  
she is. There are times when she simply needs privacy, to get away from people. If he's forcing you  
to all stay together regularly..." She trailed off. "It's no wonder she comes back so tense and  
off-kilter."  
  
Darien understood the 'need to get away' part, but not what it had to do with bunking together.  
Unless... Ah, crap. He remembered something Alyx said this morning about being aware of both him  
and Hobbes all the time because she worked with them. He sighed -- there wasn't anything he could  
do about it now -- and helped Claire get unpacked. They needed to get downstairs and find Hobbes,  
to let him know the real work could begin.  
  
  



	5. Chapter Five

  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Part 5  
  
Alyx stood behind Hobbes in the small meeting, trying to convince her body it was not nearly as  
cold as she thought it was. Today she was doing all black, with an oriental twist. Hobbes had taken  
one look at her and shaken his head. Not in dismay -- she could tell he was pleased -- but more  
because he knew how deceiving the look was, especially on her. She only wished that the top she was  
wearing had sleeves. It looked impressive, but it was getting harder to keep the goose bumps from  
appearing. If she had only learned one thing from this 'vacation,' it was this: show any sign of  
weakness, and you could kiss breathing goodbye.  
  
So she did what was necessary, keeping up the appearance of bland indifference while watching  
Hobbes' back and keeping her senses open for trouble. The meeting was educational, and went well  
with the work she had been doing in one of her most recent courses. The Official had apparently  
decided she was ready to learn about any and all forms of mass destruction, from homemade pipe  
bombs to complicated timed devices to timed chemical rigs.  
  
The guy on the stage was supposedly one of the world's preeminent bomb designers, at least on the  
terrorist front. He had a blackboard full of calculations on some new and stable chemical he had  
created that went boom in a really big way with only a small amount. Kind of like nitroglycerine  
with attitude, and without the stability problems. Alyx found herself getting distracted by the  
stupid formula. It was beginning to drive her crazy, so when the floor was opened up to questions  
her hand went up.  
  
"Kid what the hell are you doing?" Hobbes asked when he realized that it was her that had been  
chosen to ask the first question.  
  
"Saving some schmuck's ass," she commented before looking up at the speaker. "I have no intention  
to discredit you, but this is your formula?" The man at the podium nodded. "You do realize that  
with the ratio you are claiming to use, it would self-destruct due to too high an acid  
concentration?"  
  
There was a sharp intake of breath from those on the stage with the guy, and Hobbes spun about to  
glare at her. He had no idea if she was correct, but she should not have drawn attention to herself.  
  
One of the gentlemen on the stage stood up and began bellowing at her about how a lowly bodyguard  
-- and a female one at that -- should mind her place and not try to understand things far above her  
intelligence. He would have continued except that the creator of this little bit of magnificence had  
gotten up to examine the formula carefully. When he was done, he turned and looked at Alyx, who  
still stood, ignoring the bellowing.  
  
"Shut up," he barked, and the guy lecturing her did so. "She is correct. Whoever copied my formula  
reversed the numbers here." He pointed to the area on the board. "For whom do you work?"  
  
"Victor Battaglia," Alyx answered, and Hobbes got to his feet for a second to acknowledge the fact.  
  
"I would suggest you give her a raise," the speaker said and then returned to his seat. "Next  
question."  
  
Hobbes didn't say a word until the meeting broke up. "Kid, sometimes you scare me. Let me guess:  
you've been studying bomb design recently and they gave you the chem design course."  
  
Alyx nodded. "Memorizing formulas and designs is easy for me. Want to see the chem rig I can build  
out of every day household products?"  
  
He laughed. "Not right now. Just next time, please, don't do that." Yeah, he asked. She was kind of  
like Fawkes in the taking orders department; gentle persuasion usually worked a lot better.  
  
"Boss, the reason I spoke up is because some of those guys were gonna go home and try it out for  
themselves. With the incorrect formula, it would make one hell of a mess and require a HAZMAT unit  
to clean up," Alyx answered truthfully. She didn't even want to think about how many people died or  
were severely injured in the screw ups for that... that thing's development testing. "I felt it  
pru..." she trailed off as she caught that flash of recognition again. She closed her eyes and  
opened up her shields a bit more, but could not pinpoint it among all the other voices and emotions  
that surged into her mind with the increased contact.  
  
Hobbes noticed, and knew by now what was going on. Placing a hand on her back, being very careful  
not to make contact skin on skin, he moved her out of the flow of people going from one meeting  
hall to another. "Kid?"  
  
*Someone recognized us, but I can't find him. There are too many others,* she sent to him, sounding  
a bit strained.  
  
While he wasn't thrilled with the method, he had to admit that bit of info was best shared in this  
manner. *All right. Drop the search for now.*  
  
*Bobby?* Alyx wanted to be sure.  
  
He did set a hand on her bare arm then, giving her an orientation to help her back. He'd had to  
learn some weird things to work with her, but he did know what to do. A moment later she opened her  
eyes and blinked up at him.  
  
"Sorry, there are some very strong minds in this group," Alyx said to explain.  
  
"No prob." He directed her to the next meeting they planned on attending before the lunch break.  
'How to Gain Loyalty to Your Cause.' "See if you can find him while I pretend to listen."  
  
"I'll try." She took up her usual spot standing behind his chair as they waited for the lecture to  
begin. This time she didn't close her eyes, but she really wasn't seeing anything as she  
concentrated on those around her. Once she had lightly gone over all the minds in the room, she  
expanded her search outward until she started to lose track of herself in the midst of all the  
other minds and emotions. Each time, she would pull back and take the time to refocus before  
starting again.  
  
About halfway through the meeting, she realized how very cold she was getting. This type of forced  
concentration, much like doing meditation, tended to slow the heart rate and circulation, thus  
chilling her even more. So she took the time to artificially elevate her heart rate to compensate.  
By the time the meeting was over, she was no closer to finding the person, but at least Hobbes knew  
about him now, and there was a good chance she would recognize the mind the next time it was near  
her.  
  
As she escorted Hobbes from the room, they ran into Darien and Claire.  
  
"Boss, you remember the good doctor. Regina Curtis," Darien filled in before either of them tried  
to call her Claire or Keeper out here.  
  
"Of course." Hobbes took one of her hands and brought it to his lips. "How could I ever forget?"  
Releasing her hand, he tried not to laugh at the astonished look on her face. "We were just about  
to head to lunch. Care to join us?"  
  
"Ummm, Boss. I think I should be heading back to the room." Alyx absentmindedly rubbed the side of  
her head.  
  
Claire took one look at her and agreed wholeheartedly. Alyx was a lovely shade of pale and, based  
on the way she was rubbing her head, was working on one of her headaches. "Angel, what have you  
been doing?" she hissed as they all headed back to the room.  
  
"My job," Alyx snapped. "And trying to keep from shivering. I'd be one hell of an unimpressive  
bodyguard standing there with my teeth chattering." She had done what was necessary to get the job  
done, but she needed a break before the evening show-and-tell.  
  
They got her to the room and Claire grabbed her wrist to get her pulse. She was not thrilled to  
find it galloping along. Alyx had even begun to sweat lightly. "What did you do?"  
  
"I artificially elevated my heart rate to keep warm while I was doing some searching," she  
explained.  
  
Claire tsked. She understood the reasoning. "You do know what's going to happen as soon as you slow  
it, don't you?"  
  
Alyx nodded. "That's why I wanted to be back here." She closed her eyes. "Here we go."  
  
Claire stepped back and turned to Darien. "Catch her."  
  
Darien didn't even get the chance to ask what she was talking about; Alyx simply folded. He was  
successful in catching her, barely. Not needing to be told, he carried her through to the bedroom  
and lay her down on top of the covers. He then grabbed that blanket she'd been walking around in  
and tossed it over her now-shivering body.  
  
"Has she been cold since arriving here?" Claire asked, moving to examine her.  
  
"Yeah, walking popsicle," Hobbes offered.  
  
"Titanic's bane," Darien added.  
  
"Titanic? Good one, Fawkes. A bit dated, but good," Hobbes said with a snicker.  
  
"Will you two please be quiet?" Claire snapped at them. On the bed Alyx groaned. "How are you  
feeling?" Claire asked her.  
  
"C...c...cold, again," she answered, pulling the blanket closer about her. "I'll manage."  
  
"Have you been cold the entire time?" Claire asked, checking her pulse. She was pleased to find it  
was once again something resembling normal. "Did you get any sleep?"  
  
"Freezing my butt off since we arrived, and I got four hours last night. About normal." Normal for  
her, anyway. She scooted up into a sitting position. She felt fine; it was just the sudden change  
from the fast heart rate to slow that had put her down. "How about some lunch? I'm starved."  
  
Hobbes shook his head. "Sure kid. I'll have something brought up for the lot of us. We should  
probably check out the toys the Keep brought for us anyway." Both Hobbes and Claire walked back  
out to the sitting room where the trunk was waiting.  
  
Darien rubbed the back of his neck and sat on the bed next to Alyx. "You sure you're okay?"  
  
Alyx smiled. "Just doing my Mr. Freeze impression again. Someone recognized us, here. We have to be  
really careful."  
  
"Recognized us? How?"  
  
She shrugged. "Saw us, I would guess. Who? I have no idea yet, but he obviously hasn't told anyone  
of importance." She had an odd thought then and slid off the bed. She walked out into the sitting  
area, where Claire was explaining some of the items she had brought. "Bobby could there be someone  
else here undercover?"  
  
"Not from the Agency, but yeah, it's possible. CIA or NSA would have a big interest in this thing.  
Why?" Hobbes had gotten to his feet and moved closer to her. She was still shivering and was doing  
that blue thing again. "Kid, sit down before you fall down." He hesitated for a moment, then  
decided he'd rather have her functional. "Fawkes, get her warm."  
  
That got a surprised eyebrow-raise out of Claire. Bobby had been doing his best to keep them apart  
ever since he'd figured out that Darien's attraction to Alyx was not just some passing fad.  
  
Hobbes caught Claire's look. "Unless you have something to poke her with that will help?"  
  
Claire shook her head. "Nothing that she can't do on her own. I'm just not sure why she's cold."  
She turned to Alyx. "Have you been like this back home?"  
  
"Not this bad," Alyx answered through chattering teeth.  
  
Darien set his hands on her shoulders and pulled her down onto the sofa, wrapping his arms about  
her. "You are an ice cube again," he commented as he attempted to warm one of her hands.  
  
Claire moved away and came back with a thermometer, which she stuck unceremoniously in Alyx's  
mouth. "This is your first winter since... since..."  
  
"Uh-huh," Alyx managed around the thermometer, which then beeped and Alyx pulled it from her mouth.  
The number there did not make her very happy, and she handed it to Claire.  
  
"This can't be right." She reset the thing and they tried again. "No playing with it," Claire  
admonished. Not that she thought Alyx had, but more to ease her into relaxing. Even she could tell  
Alyx was more than a bit tense. When it beeped again, Claire looked at it and frowned.  
  
"Keep?" Darien asked, pulling Alyx in a bit closer until she rested her head against his shoulder.  
He could feel her trying not to shiver under the blanket.  
  
"According to this, she's running a mild fever. The cold and shivering could be indicative of a  
virus, but she doesn't appear to have any other symptoms." Claire returned the thermometer to her  
bag and sat down in a chair.  
  
"I feel fine except for being cold." Alyx turned back to Bobby. "We need to come up with an escape  
plan in case they guy who recognizes us decides to cause trouble."  
  
"There's always the plane," Hobbes said. "We get there and commandeer it."  
  
Both Claire and Alyx shook their heads, but it was Claire who spoke. "The pilot said everything was  
going to be shut down. They're expecting near-blizzard conditions for the next three days. The  
only way out is going to be by car, maybe. Or on foot."  
  
Hobbes groaned. "Perfect. Just perfect." He rubbed the top of his head, making the few hairs there  
stand up oddly. "I'm going to make a phone call and try in find out if there is another agent here.  
We can't afford to be stepping on each other's toes." There was a knock on the door then and  
Hobbes moved to answer it without thinking.  
  
Alyx jumped to her feet, tossing the blanket away, and intercepted him. "Boss, I don't think you  
should be answering the door."  
  
"Oh, right." He backed away and made sure he was out of line of sight, just in case.  
  
Alyx set one hand on her lower back under her shirt and opened the door cautiously. "Can I help  
you?"  
  
"Room service, Miss O'Connor." The uniformed man watched her carefully, waiting.  
  
Alyx gave the cart a quick mental scan and then carefully examined it by hand to make sure there  
was nothing suspicious. It was quite obvious, by the man's lack of reaction, that this was  
expected. When she was done she stepped aside and waved him in. Darien had gotten to his feet and  
stood nearby, to hand over the tip that got a smile from the guy as he scooted out the door. Alyx  
rolled her shoulders to relieve the tension there as soon as she had locked the door. Darien was  
already removing the covers from the items to see what Bobby and Claire had ordered. He turned his  
head slightly to look at her.  
  
"Okay, I'll bite. What are you hiding back there?" He waved a hand at her.  
  
Alyx reached around and pulled out the knife she'd stuffed there. "Just my handy-dandy pig-sticker."  
  
"You been practicing with that, kid?" Hobbes asked her as he moved over to claim his portion of the  
food. He carried it over to the table shoved in a corner.  
  
"Of course." She gave him a quick demo before stuffing the blade back into her pants. Then she  
picked up an oversized mug of soup and a spoon. She forced herself not to shiver -- she wanted to  
eat the soup, not wear it. "They've been running me through some new self-defense techniques, as  
well as the kill scenarios." Hobbes gave her an odd look. "You know; one hundred and one ways to  
kill a man with dental floss."  
  
Darien choked on his sandwich and had to have Claire rescue him from certain death by pastrami.  
Hobbes' reaction wasn't much different. "Why the hell are they teaching you close-quarter kill  
techniques?"  
  
"Got me, but I hate it." Her voice dropped. "I'm deadly enough as it is, without knowing how to  
kill barehanded, too."  
  
"No kidding." Then, realizing what he had said, Hobbes tried to apologize. "Ah, crap kid, that's  
not what I meant."  
  
"Why not, Bobby? It's true enough." She sat down with her soup and tried to warm her hands. "You  
have no idea how close Menkin came to being in a body bag the other day." She closed her eyes and  
shook.  
  
Hobbes watched her and decided the Official was an idiot. She didn't need to know any more methods  
to kill. Protecting herself, yeah. Defensive and offensive techniques, sure. But it sounded like  
the Fat Man was trying to turn her into his personal killing machine, and Hobbes knew that wouldn't  
work. He'd hung around her long enough to know exactly how reluctant she was to use any of her  
abilities. When she fought, she did it well, but she always held back. Always. No wonder she'd been  
freaked the other day. It was one of the hardest things to learn: to kill. And once that line had  
been crossed, there was no going back.  
  
"Kid, the point is, he didn't. I realize some serious shit happened before you came here, but a lot  
has changed since then," Hobbes pointed out. Alyx opened her eyes to look at him. "Whoever you were  
before doesn't matter..."  
  
Alyx shook her head violently and snarled at him. "You have no idea what you're talking about,  
Bobby."  
  
He'd tried, but maybe she wasn't ready for this discussion. "You're right kid, I don't, but I also  
don't care. I never met that other person, just the one sitting here with me, and it's this one I'm  
partnered with. That's all that matters to me."  
  
Alyx rubbed the side of her head again, this time in consternation. She was unsure what to say now.  
  
"Eat, kid. The boss will dock my paycheck if he has to thaw you." Hobbes was only half joking. He'd  
been docked for odder things in the past. "This afternoon Fawkes'll do the bodyguard thing. Keepy,  
go over all the toys with her while we're gone. She'll learn the fastest and, based on her  
commentary this morning, no one will be surprised that she knows it all."  
  
No one really argued. The only problem was that Darien would not be able to spot the mystery guy  
unless he was really lucky, but Alyx did need the break. Maybe between her and Claire they could  
figure out something to help her.  
  
"You want us to make a grand entrance when they open the doors?" Alyx asked him.  
  
Hobbes nodded and picked up his plate. "I'm gonna make that call." He walked into the bedroom and  
shut the door behind him.  
  
Darien had watched all this with bemusement. Once again he was being left behind in the  
conversation. Something had just gone on between Alyx and Bobby, but he wasn't entirely sure what.  
So he changed the topic to something he could understand. Maybe. "Can you help her, Claire?"  
  
"Not without performing some tests that I don't have the equipment for," she answered. "I'd have to  
determine what is causing the effect first, before I could create a way to counter it." She set down  
her fork. "It might be perfectly normal for her. There's no way to tell as long as we're here."  
  
"I'm fine, Dare. I don't think I'm about to turn into an ice sculpture or anything," Alyx said  
between sips of the soup. Slowly she was warming up.  
  
"Unless this is some unexpected and unforeseen side effect of what was done to you," Claire said  
straight-faced.  
  
Alyx shook her head and grinned; she knew the alterations were reasonably stable. Darien, however,  
didn't get that she was joking. "Then maybe we should call this off and get her home. If it could  
be serious...." He trailed off as he realized both women were trying not to laugh at him. "And  
that went right over my head, didn't it?"  
  
"S'all right. You can still try and keep me warm." Alyx leaned against him as he sighed. "Unless  
you find that far too onerous a duty."  
  
"Please do so, Darien. She does not look at all good in that particular shade of blue," Claire  
commented.  
  
"I thought she looked looked cute in her blue jammies." Darien was surprised that he actually  
managed to make Alyx blush. Deciding to spread about the embarrassment he said to Claire, "Of  
course, I'm sure it's not nearly as cute as what you sleep in, Keepy."  
  
"Fawkes, behave," Hobbes said as he came back into the room. "What Claire does or does not wear to  
bed is none of your business."  
  
Claire wasn't sure if he was continuing the joke or defending her. Maybe a little of both. "Well?"  
  
"Eberts is working on it and hopes to have something for us by this time tomorrow. Until then, we  
follow the plan." Hobbes sat down next to Claire and grabbed some more food. "Fawkes, eat. Or  
you'll be skinnier than the kid there."  
  
Without complaint, Alyx shifted so Darien could get up. He was back a few moments later with the  
plateful of food that he had set down. He wrapped on arm around Alyx again and began to eat. "So  
Hobbes what fun and excitement are we in for this afternoon."  
  
Hobbes chuckled. "Don't worry, Fawkes, you'll find it quite educational."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Everything seemed to go as planned. Alyx and Claire spent the afternoon reviewing the gear and  
making Alyx as much of an expert in it as could be done in a few hours. When they walked into the  
show-and-tell that evening, they made an impressive-looking pair. Claire was leading the way,  
wearing purple from head to toe. Alyx trailed behind the rolling cart behind pushed by a lodge  
employee, still in her black and doing her best to look dangerous.  
  
She was successful.  
  
They spent the next several hours giving demonstrations of various items to interested parties.  
From wrist sheaths to small items that fired darts, hidden injectors to creatively disguised  
throwing knives; they had to give the boss credit in setting this up. They shared a demonstration  
area with a few others who sold similar wares. When someone wanted to see how an item worked, Alyx  
was more than happy to show them, for while she did she was able to pull information from the  
surface of their minds. Information that might be very useful in the long run.  
  
The sticks she had holding her hair up in a bun were an example of the toys they were offering. At  
one point, a potential buyer complained that they could not be nearly effective enough. Alyx gave  
an impromptu demo. With a sly,"Oh, really?" she spun about, pulling them out of her hair -- the  
daggers were hidden in the hair pieces and were released with a simple twist -- and flung them at  
the target behind her. All within seconds.  
  
She looked the guy over. "The wielder is what makes them effective, plus they can be poison-tipped  
and are too small to hold prints." The guy stared at her and swallowed hard. "We also have them  
patterned after usable chopsticks."  
  
Darien had retrieved the thin daggers and handed them back to her, not wanting to even attempt to  
put them back in place. With a practiced motion, she returned them to the hollow sections still in  
her hair and locked them into place.  
  
Hobbes and the gentleman began a detailed discussion then, but it involved the guy trying to buy  
her instead of the items they were trying to sell. Alyx didn't really listen; she had caught that  
shocked recognition again, only this time it was tinged with anger as well. She tried, really  
tried, to find the source of it, but was defeated once again by the number of minds in the room.  
  
Frustrated, and becoming concerned about this unknown, she gritted her teeth and opened her  
shields, intending to find him. She hadn't forgotten how stupid or painful this could be, but did  
it anyway. She let most of the voices slide away and focused on that one mind she needed to find.  
The distrust and hate in this room was intense, but mostly covered with a veneer of peace and  
insincere comradeship that made her feel nauseous. She somehow kept herself from probing too deeply  
on any particular person; these people hid way too much information that, although it would probably  
make the Official very happy to have, she wanted no part of. Slipping through and past minds that  
didn't interest her, she found him and probed a bit deeper.  
  
It was Darien he had recognized. She was trying to find out where from and who he was when she was  
rudely jerked back to herself. She reacted to the unwanted intrusion with anger, backed by power.  
  
Darien was surprised when Alyx did not react to the negotiations going on between Hobbes and the  
slime-ball sitting with them regarding the possibility of purchasing her, either in toto or on a  
job-by-job basis. Instead, Alyx's eyes had gotten unfocused and she was staring off into the crowd.  
After a moment, she tipped her head slightly like she was trying to focus, and her eyes began to do  
that glow thing that was really hard to miss.  
  
He stepped between her and the majority of the crowd. "Alyx ," he said quietly, trying to get her  
attention. Instead, her brow furrowed and she went even paler than she already was. This was not  
good. He set a hand on her shoulder to bring her back. Whatever it was she was doing was not  
helping her any; she was not just cold, but clammy as well, and he was betting her heart was  
pounding along at top speed again. Her hand came up to grasp his wrist -- to move it away, he  
suspected. What he didn't expect was the sudden overwhelming pain that was shoved into his body at  
her touch. It was worse than the time as a kid when he'd accidentally grabbed a live wire in a  
light cord. This burned into him and set every nerve afire.  
  
With a yelp of pain he let go of her and dropped to the floor, holding his head in pain.  
  
Hobbes, thinking he was screwing around for some reason, barked, "Fawkes!" Claire dropped to her  
knees next to him, suspecting he was having an unexpected attack of pre-madness symptoms.  
  
"Easy, Da... Fawkes," Claire said as soothingly as possible.  
  
Darien couldn't even talk; everything still hurt so much. He just curled up, whimpering.  
  
Alyx blinked back to reality, and paled as she realized what she had done and to whom. "Boss, it's  
time to pack it in," she got out as steadily as she could.  
  
Hobbes took one look at her and nodded. She was bordering on green at this point. "Yeah, we have  
enough for tonight."  
  
Claire continued to try and get Darien calm, while Alyx and Hobbes packed up the gear. When people  
began to take notice of the situation, Alyx did her best 'it's none of your business' glare and got  
most of them to turn away. By the time they had the trunk of gear loaded up to move, Darien was on  
his feet, a bit shaky, but up and moving.  
  
By the time they got to the room, Alyx was berating herself. She barely made it to the bathroom in  
time to get rid of what she had eaten earlier. She locked the door and huddled on the floor, not  
wanting to go out and face them. All she could think of was that she had attacked Darien as if he  
were a hated enemy. Even though she was concentrating on something else, she should have known it  
was him, she should not have...have.... Just the thought was enough to make her ill again. She  
ignored the banging on the door and the voices calling to her. It was bad enough when she reacted  
like this at bad guys, but at her friends? She wanted no part of it.  
  
Claire finished examining Darien and pronounced him alive, though barely. It was an attempt at  
humor that fell a bit flat, considering they all knew Alyx was hiding in the bathroom because she  
had done this.  
  
"Darien, can you quicksilver for me?" Claire had to do this. If the gland was affected, there  
could be serious problems.  
  
"Uh, sure." He held out his left arm and quicksilvered from the elbow down. He waited a few  
seconds and then stopped the flow and shook off the flakes.  
  
"What the hell happened down there, Fawkes?" Making a spectacle of themselves would not help them  
in this group.  
  
Darien shrugged, not entirely sure himself. "Alyx was off somewhere and her eyes began to glow. I  
thought that might not be a good idea and tried to get her to come back. When she didn't respond to  
her name, I touched her. She grabbed my wrist, and the next thing I know I'm holding lightning and  
she's growling at me." His head was still doing this weird buzzing thing. "You'd think I'd know  
better than to touch her on bare skin by now." He shook his head, trying to get rid of the ringing  
in his ears.  
  
"So she zapped you a good one," Hobbes summed up. "And now she's feeling guilty."  
  
"It's not her fault," Darien protested. He meant it. He knew she could and would react  
unconsciously in certain situations. Hell, everyone did. Most people just didn't have her unique  
ways of doing so.  
  
"No, it's not. Or not entirely, anyway. With the types of minds she must have been touching, it's  
not surprising she reacted with violence. Self-preservation is a very powerful motivator." Claire  
checked Darien's eyes one last time, glad to see his pupils were finally the same size. Alyx had  
zapped him a very good one. "Now we have to convince her to come out of the bathroom so that I can  
check her."  
  
"I'll give it a try Keepy." Hobbes wandered out to the sitting room and they could hear him  
knocking on the door and talking to Alyx.  
  
"What is going on with her, Claire? I know she was a bit depressed about the holidays, but I  
thought she had...oh, found herself or something. Even you said she had full control." Darien was  
hoping Claire might be willing to explain so that he could understand better.  
  
"Darien, there is a lot I do not know about her and her past. What little I do know mostly involves  
her time at the lab before coming to the Agency." Claire got to her feet and paced across the room.  
"I have some partial medical records from before, but they don't tell me much." She suspected a few  
things, but had no proof as of yet and she was not willing to confront Alyx about it. "I do think  
she has real reasons for not wanting to hurt people, reasons that go beyond what happened at the  
lab." She stopped by her medical bag and returned the pen light to its place. "She may have gained  
the control she needed, but that has nothing to do with her reactions, or with her emotions."  
  
"And the Official has made a point of training her like any other agent that comes in, forgetting  
that she might not want that," Darien said in irritation. Maybe it was better that he'd been  
trained the way he had. "The Official doesn't give a damn, does he?"  
  
Hobbes poked his head back in before she could answer. "Keep, maybe you should give this a try. I  
can't even get her to yell at me."  
  
"Oh, bloody hell." Claire was concerned that Alyx might go back to her state of near catatonia  
that occurred right after the destruction of the lab. It had taken over a week for her to come out  
of it the last time. She knocked on the door and tried the handle, finding it locked like she  
expected. "Alyx, you need to come out so that I can check you. We know it was unintentional, and  
Darien is just fine. Please, Alyx."  
  
Darien pushed his way through and went to work with his lock picks; he had the door open in  
seconds. Swinging it open, he half-expected it to be shoved shut again by unseen hands, but nothing  
happened. Guessing it was safe, he stepped in and found her sitting between the sink and the wall,  
with her legs stretched out before her and her head tipped back against the tile. "Alyx?"  
  
"I'm sorry," she said in a quiet voice. "I just..." She moved her head enough to look at him.  
"I... You're the last person I want to hurt."  
  
"Hey, I've beat you up a few times; I guess I deserve it." Darien shut the door and sat down on  
the floor, ignoring the protests of the others.  
  
"You don't understand. That wasn't some uncontrolled reaction or some drug-induced madness. That  
was me being pissed off and lashing out." She dropped her head. "At you."  
  
"Doesn't matter. Come on, even I can see you're wired. We've been working forever, plus the  
holidays, plus you've been taking all those classes on how to hurt people recently." She nodded  
slightly. "Plus we're walking around in a hotel full of our traditional enemies and pretending to  
make nice. Hell, I'm jumpy, too." He lowered his voice. "To tell the truth, I spent the afternoon  
trying not to go see-through every time I got bumped or someone looked at me oddly. I find this no  
easier than you."  
  
She started laughing then. "See, you really don't understand." She shifted forward so that she was  
on her hands and knees. "I'm enjoying every minute of it."  
  
  



	6. Chapter Six

  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Part 6  
  
Somehow they got through that evening without driving each other crazy, and without causing any  
more embarrassment than could be readily avoided. Claire was still not thrilled with the sleeping  
arrangements, but there wasn't a whole lot of choice. So Claire curled up in the one bed with Alyx,  
and the guys snoozed away in theirs.  
  
Alyx found herself unable to sleep and retreated out to the sitting area with a pillow and a couple  
of blankets to channel surf for a few hours. When she finally drifted off, it was out of exhaustion  
and nothing more.  
  
Alyx was noticeably subdued during breakfast and throughout the morning demonstrations. Darien,  
while not wanting to upset her, stayed near her so that she might take what comfort she could from  
his presence. They had talked for a while the night before, after he had convinced her to come out  
of the bathroom and be checked over by Claire. He could tell she was still cold, but she was doing  
her best to ignore it. She just kept rubbing the side of her head; he had the oddest feeling it was  
a habit that she had forgotten about. Much like his new tendency to rub the back of his neck. That  
didn't start till he got the gland. It made him wonder what had happened to her what would cause  
such a habit to develop.  
  
Around lunchtime, she seemed to come back to herself a bit. After securing their wares, they headed  
off to one of the meetings that came highly recommended and was apparently a tradition of this  
convention. They took some seats off to one side of the room -- or rather, Claire and Hobbes did.  
Alyx and Darien stood nearby, doing their jobs and keeping an eye out for trouble. Alyx had not  
spotted that watcher all day, but had gathered what information she could from those who came to  
speak to them.  
  
She and Darien were a study in contrasts. Darien was doing the black thing again today and looked  
impressive, if a bit casual compared to most of the others. Alyx was wearing a dark red outfit he  
hadn't seen before. This one at least had long sleeves, and she hadn't been shivering nearly as  
much. Leaning over slightly, he spoke softly. "You holding up?"  
  
"Nah, too many bodyguards for a robbery." She slowly turned her head, surveying the room.  
  
Darien had to suppress a laugh. "That wasn't what I meant."  
  
"Right. Like it hasn't crossed your mind to pick a few pockets while wandering around in the  
crowds?" She turned a bit more to actually look at him, more than a little grateful he hadn't felt  
the need to stay as far away from her as he could. He would have been more than justified in doing  
so.  
  
"We okay?" he asked her quietly.  
  
"Yeah. We're okay." Alyx smiled.  
  
"Good. I'll teach you how to pick pockets later." Darien set a hand on her shoulder as she shook  
with laughter for a minute.  
  
"Dare..." she began, but was interrupted by someone at the podium clearing his throat.  
  
"If you would take your seats, please, we'll get started." At his words, the room settled amazingly  
fast. "As you know, this year we are calling our event 'Hinds and Hounds'." There were cheers from  
the audience. "Due to the size of some of the attendees' groups, we are limiting teams to four  
members this year." There were a few less-than-pleasant comments that were quickly stifled.  
"However, we are adding a new element to go with the theme. Each team will be issued one  
traditional long bow and a quiver of arrows." That garnered more enthusiastic cheers.  
  
Darien leaned over Alyx's shoulder. "What the hell is this?"  
  
Alyx shook her head. *I'm not sure.*  
  
The audience began to chant, "Choose!" over and over again until the speaker bellowed, "Silence!"  
into the microphone. An oversized fishbowl was brought to the stage and set on the table next to  
the podium. "For those new this year -- you know who you are -- you have the same chance as all the  
rest to be chosen. We do not play favorites with this game." He reached into the bowl and pulled out  
a piece of folded paper. Unfolding it, he read the name out to the room. "This year, our winner is  
Victor Battaglia."  
  
Hobbes didn't even twitch. He had exactly zero idea of what was going on, but would do his  
damnedest to play it cool.  
  
"Mr. Battaglia, you and your team have been chosen to play the part of the Hinds in this year's  
annual hunt," the speaker said. "Beginning at six AM tomorrow, you will have a three hour  
head-start to lose yourselves in the wilderness around this resort. Your job is survival. If even  
one of your team members can survive the twenty-four hours after the hounds are released and make  
it back to the lobby of this hotel, you will have won and will collect your reward. If your team is  
captured, one and all you will receive your due."  
  
Hobbes stayed in his chair, waiting for the next shoe to drop. Alyx scanned the guy on the stage.  
She'd seen him around and knew he worked for the resort -- well, for those currently running the  
resort, anyway. What she found scared the hell out of her.  
  
"Alyx?" Darien whispered when he heard her gasp.  
  
She shook her head. "Later."  
  
The meeting broke up then and several people stopped by to wish them luck on the morrow.  
  
Alyx and Darien moved over to collect Hobbes and Claire, hoping to make it back to their rooms  
before they felt the need to discuss this, only to be stopped by one of the hotel personnel. "My  
apologies, Mr. Battaglia."  
  
Hobbes waved his hand.  
  
"All the gear will be delivered to your room. There is a list of additional gear we will provide at  
your request." He looked over each of them. "Any additional questions, dial the front desk. We will  
meet you in the lobby at oh five forty-five tomorrow." With a stiff nod he turned and walked away.  
  
"I got a question," Darien muttered.  
  
"And what would that be Fawkes?" Hobbes asked as he got them moving. He wanted to get back to their  
room as soon as possible.  
  
Darien prudently lowered his voice. "How do I get out of this chicken-shit outfit?"  
  
Alyx broke out in harsh laughter. "Remind me to never let the 'Fish plan my vacation again."  
  
Claire looked shocked as Darien got the door open and they walked in. "He told you it was a  
vacation?"  
  
Alyx nodded and scanned the room again. There were still no bugs that she could detect. Piled  
neatly on the table were clothes and some simple, basic survival gear. There were also several  
sheets of paper that just screamed 'read me.' Alyx excused herself to head for the bathroom;  
Hobbes read over the papers that essentially outlined the rules for this 'game' as well as the  
boundaries surrounding the property.  
  
When Alyx came back out she was shaking, but not with cold. "We were set up, Bobby."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"I read the guys on the stage. We were set up for this role as the 'hind'." Alyx was angry as hell.  
  
"What the hell is a hind anyway?" Hobbes asked.  
  
"A female deer. Think of this as a fox hunt and we're the fox," Darien answered. "And we all know  
what happens to the fox when it's caught, don't we?"  
  
"Ah, crap," Hobbes spoke for all of them.  
  
"Now wait, he was talking about some reward if we got even one person back here for the  
deadline." He looked over the papers again but didn't find any more information than before.  
  
Alyx collapsed onto the sofa. "A contract, Bobby. The reward is their business for the next year."  
  
"Alyx, what are you talking about?" Claire asked as she looked over the gear they were being  
provided. The selection was more than adequate for someone with the necessary skills.  
  
"We know this isn't the regular resort staff, Claire. We think they're the guys who organize this  
con every year," Darien filled in, but beyond that he had no clue.  
  
"Ah, gods. Think. What better way to find the best of the best to supply your weapons or warm  
bodies than by hosting a yearly event to let them show off their stuff? The 'attendees' aren't the  
big guys. The ones running the show are." Alyx ran her fingers through her hair with a growl of  
frustration.  
  
"Who kid? Who are they?" Hobbes asked.  
  
"I don't know," she said in frustration, "But it was one of them that recognized Darien here.  
That's why they set us up."  
  
"Easy kid. We'll figure something out." Hobbes sat down at the table.  
  
"Like what, Bobby? Maybe escape? Hike down the mountain? Maybe steal the airplane in a blizzard?"  
Her voice rose to a shout by the end. "Bobby, don't you think they've dealt with people trying to  
bolt before? Personally, I'd rather not go into this game without the little gear they will give  
us. Which is what will happen if we try and bolt."  
  
"Jeez kid, you got all that but you don't know who they are?" Hobbes was prepared for another bout  
of yelling, but instead got a tired sigh.  
  
"This sucks," Alyx commented. Her anger having burned away she began to shiver. "Can I call in sick  
tomorrow, please?" She flopped over on her side and looked at the rest of them with a feeling of  
helplessness.  
  
"It isn't that bad, Alyx," Claire said after going over the gear carefully. They would all need the  
boots, hats and gloves offered by those in charge.  
  
"I agree with Alyx," Darien offered. Moving over to the sofa, he lifted Alyx's legs and sat down,  
placing them across his lap. "This sucks."  
  
"Fawkes, this isn't the worst scrape we've been in. We'll think of something," Hobbes said,  
exasperated with the air of defeat already permeating the room.  
  
"Well, I could blow up the building before tomorrow, but the 'Fish might dock your pay for it."  
Alyx kept the smile off her face.  
  
"Don't tempt me, kid." He grabbed the waterproofed map. "How about we just come up with a plan?"  
He tried to spread the map out on the coffee table, but it was too large. Almost as one he and  
Darien said "Bed." They all got up and moved into the bedroom, where Bobby spread the topological  
map out. The area for the hunt was outlined, and covered a couple hundred acres. More than enough  
room to make it interesting.  
  
"How far can we get in three hours in this weather?" Claire asked as she looked over the map.  
  
"Not far enough, but any head start will be useful in these conditions." He looked over at Fawkes  
and Alyx, watching as Darien casually picked up and then draped a blanket around her shoulders.  
Hobbes saw it for what it truly was, for a change -- an act of kindness from a friend. They weren't  
getting all moony- eyed at each other, even when she was curled up in his arms. They were simply  
comfortable with each other, much like himself and Fawkes. In this case, it was a good thing; there  
would be no time for arguing or discomfort tomorrow. The four of them were going to have to work  
together perfectly if they hoped to survive.  
  
"Hey Hobbes, how about breaking out that scotch you got?" Darien said with a frown still on his  
face.  
  
"Oooh, yes, Hobbesy. Please," Alyx pleaded with some anticipation. "I did earn it, after all."  
  
Hobbes considered for a moment, then decided why not, so long as they didn't get carried away. It  
even might help relax Fawkes and the kid. "What the hell." He retrieved the scotch from a nearby  
bureau and twisted off the top. He savored the aroma for a moment and then drank straight from the  
bottle. The burn of aged, smooth scotch was wonderful. Walking back to the bed he handed the bottle  
to Claire who held it gingerly for a second before shrugging and downing a good-sized swallow.  
  
When she began to cough and gasp, Bobby patted her on the back. "Oh, my," Claire commented as she  
handed the bottle to Alyx.  
  
Alyx had smelled the intoxicating brew from across the room and was looking forward to tasting it.  
When she upended the bottle and took a long drink, even Bobby was surprised. "Now that is  
scotch." She handed the bottle to Darien, who was shaking his head.  
  
"You've been drinking the tequila straight again, haven't you?" Alyx grinned and watched him tip  
the bottle back to drink. Once back in Bobby's hands, he carefully replaced the top and set it  
aside for now.  
  
"I think we should make some time and hole up overnight, then head back to the lodge by a  
roundabout route, intending to arrive once the time limit is over."  
  
Alyx was nodding in agreement. "But where to hole up and when? Do we want them to get past us while  
we rest or..." she trailed off, thinking.  
  
"I know that look." Darien said. "You've thought of something."  
  
"Hobbes, do the rules say anything about the 'hinds' fighting back?" Alyx kept her voice steady,  
not wanting to hope just yet.  
  
Hobbes got off the bed and retrieved the rules for this game. He read through them carefully, then  
he handed them to Claire. "Double check, please." He shook his head as the alcohol began to take  
effect. "Umm, why kid?"  
  
"Booby traps. Why not eliminate some of them if we can? I'm betting that although we're not allowed  
to take weapons, there is nothing that says we can't make or acquire some," Alyx answered. "It is  
survival, after all." She was beginning to feel that false sense of warmth that alcohol provides  
and she let the blanket slide down to her waist.  
  
"Wait a minute, kid, you want to Rambo them?" Hobbes kind of liked the idea.  
  
"Why not? Even the hind will fight back when cornered," Alyx said nodding.  
  
"Or the fox." Darien added.  
  
"Or the stag." They all turned to look at Claire. "All those horns, you know." She made a set of  
antlers with her fingers and put them on her head.  
  
Alyx and Darien burst out laughing, and Hobbes shook his head, chuckling. "No more for you. You  
cannot hold your liquor."  
  
"Oh, I don't know Hobbesy, I think she's kind of cute this way," Darien commented. "Pass the bottle  
round again. We have a plan to plan."  
  
It took a couple of hours, but they put to a plan together that stood a chance of keeping them  
alive until this little game was over. After that, who knew? Given that they were being set up, it  
was possible they would be killed either way. First things first, though. Survive the hunt, and  
then deal with the resort staff, somehow.  
  
Claire had made the phone call to get a few more items from the allowed list and, after kicking off  
her shoes, tried to help them design a few bobby traps with the items they had. The scotch went  
around a last time -- for Claire anyway, as she was asleep shortly thereafter. Curled up on the end  
of the bed with her cheek pressed against Bobby's leg, she looked like anything but the  
self-contained Keeper they all knew. And Bobby certainly didn't seem to mind as his hand rested on  
her shoulder.  
  
Alyx was sitting cross-legged at the head of the bed, with Darien lying on his right side coiled  
about her. She didn't even seem to notice him there as the three of them tossed ideas back and  
forth. There was one sticking point for the whole thing. Darien had his eyes closed, his head  
supported by his arm, listening carefully. He wasn't really dozing, just in neutral and enjoying  
the pleasant buzz the scotch had given him. Suddenly the arm supporting him was yanked away,  
causing his head to drop to the bed.  
  
"Hey," he complained without force as he opened his eyes.  
  
"Hobbesy, we have to sneak some counteragent out. Invisi-boy here isn't going to be much use  
without it. I really have no interest is chasing a quicksilver-mad fox around the forest." Alyx  
was holding Darien's wrist and showing the tattoo. It was going on three segments red by this  
point, giving him maybe twenty minutes of invisible time before he got an attack of the red-eyed  
monster.  
  
"She's got a point, Hobbes," Darien agreed. Then he broke out into a huge yawn.  
  
"I know she does, but I bet they do a search of us before we're allowed to leave." Hobbes  
countered.  
  
"Errr. Right." Alyx gave her head a quick shake and looked over at the clock. "Let's get sleeping  
beauty comfortable, and then you guys should get some sleep." Alyx slid off the bed and began to  
fold the map.  
  
"What about you, kid?" Hobbes gently slid away from Claire, not wanting to wake her.  
  
"I don't need as much sleep remember? I'll solve the counteragent problem and wake you at four  
thirty." Alyx waited for a Hobbes' nod of agreement.  
  
"Yeah, okay. Make sure you sleep some, though. You're going to need it," Hobbes admonished. "Come  
on Fawkes, help me shift Claire."  
  
Darien grumbled but did as he was asked and within minutes Claire was curled up around a pillow  
with some blankets tossed over her. Then he joined Alyx in the sitting room. She was on her knees,  
looking through the box of stuff Claire had brought. He knelt down behind her and set a hand on her  
shoulder. "Want some help?"  
  
His touch and his words caused the wrong reaction in her. "Depends in what area." She did her best  
to blame it on the alcohol that lowered her resistance to him. "Sorry," she muttered.  
  
"Hey, no need to be sorry," he responded gently, turning her about to face him. He raised his  
hand, intending to shift a stray hair that had fallen in her face, when she did the unexpected. She  
flinched away, violently.  
  
He caught her before she could fall to the floor. "Whoa. Easy there." Her hand came up to rub the  
side of her head again.  
  
For a long moment, Alyx had to force herself to remain still, to not lash out at the perceived  
danger. To keep the past and the present separate, no matter how difficult it was. "I... I guess I  
had a bit too much to drink. I'll be okay."  
  
Darien knew she was lying. Knew that her flinching away had nothing to do with her not wanting him  
to touch her, and everything to to with the hand he had innocently raised. Knew that, while she had  
matched himself and Bobby drink for drink, was probably the most sober one among them. "Alyx, you  
can talk to me. If you need to."  
  
Alyx shook her head. "Nothing to talk about."  
  
This time, when he raised his hand, she didn't move, but she didn't relax either. Part of him knew  
he shouldn't be doing this, not with the Keep and Bobby right through those half closed doors. But  
the other part wanted this so bad and, with the scotch blurring the edges of reality, that side of  
him won out. "Good, less talking is better." He leaned in and brushed his lips across hers. When  
she didn't seem to mind, he tried a second time, his tongue darting out to lick across her upper  
lip. When she stiffened instead of relaxing like he was hoping, he pulled back and searched her  
eyes.  
  
"Darien, please. I can't do this any more. It's unfair to you." Alyx shifted away and got to her  
feet.  
  
"Why? Can you just give me that much? I don't give a damn about the 'Fish's involvement, not  
anymore." Darien shifted to sit on the floor, his legs bent and arms resting atop his knees.  
  
She closed her eyes. There was no way to explain. How do you tell someone you don't really trust  
them, and probably never will, simply because of who he was and what he was forced to endure? For  
all that her very soul demanded that she give in and trust him, she simply couldn't. Couldn't trust  
anyone. Couldn't risk another betrayal in her life. Would not risk enduring pain like that again.  
Shaking her head, she spoke in a strained voice. "I just can't."  
  
She felt his pain and his anger at her words, but could do nothing about them. He would have to  
deal with his feelings on his own. She was having a hard enough time trying to deal with hers.  
  
"All right." He managed to keep his feelings out of his voice, but barely. Maybe it was for the  
best, anyway. She was obviously a little weird on the subject, though he had to admit she had been  
consistent in her refusals. It was time to give up on her, at least in that respect. He got to his  
feet slowly, feeling tired. "Good night, Alyx." He walked into the bedroom, shutting the door  
tightly behind him.  
  
"Night, Dare," Alyx whispered, and rubbed the side of her head yet again.  
  
  



	7. Chapter Seven

  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Part 7  
  
They stood in the lobby of the building, with a dozen members of the resort staff going over the  
rules yet again as well as carefully searching each of them and the backpack they'd been provided  
to carry the gear. They lucked out; the extra items Alyx had packed were either overlooked or not  
discovered at all. They were all dressed identically. The staff had provided heavy sweaters, boots,  
heavy pants, gloves, and hats that they all wore. Everything was an unimpressive dark gray that  
would blend in quite well in the current weather. The snow was coming down in a wall outside the  
doors; visibility was no more than a few feet. Luckily the wind was fairly mild or they would be in  
big trouble.  
  
In some ways the weather worked to their benefit. Their tracks would disappear almost instantly in  
the heavy snowfall, making them more difficult to track. Alyx was looking over the group and gave  
them all a light scan. She finally found the slime-ball who'd recognized Darien. There was nothing  
special about him that she could see. Less than six feet tall, dark eyes, dark hair,  
oriental-looking. She had no idea who he was, but hoped Darien would be able to fill them in later.  
  
At oh six hundred they were escorted to the main entrance and turned loose. They walked across the  
covered porch, down the short flight of stairs, turned as one and struck off to the left of the  
building, heading for the tree line furthest from the Lodge. At this point they just wanted to be  
out of sight of prying eyes. Their movement was slow, as the snow was rather deep, coming up past  
Alyx's knees even in the shallowest areas. Some of the drifts soared over Darien's head, and they  
did their best to go around them. Still, it took nearly an hour before they made the tree line.  
  
They took a short break there. Alyx leaned back against a tree, panting; it had been hardest on her  
because, even with the guys breaking trail, the snow was deeper for her relative to her height. From  
here it would get easier, between the trees reducing the amount of snow on the ground and a few  
tricks they were going to pull.  
  
"Hobbes, I just had a really bad thought," Alyx said between pants.  
  
"What, kid?"  
  
"We based our plans on them being on foot like us. What if they're not?" Alyx wished she had  
thought of this last night, and not now when it might be too late.  
  
"What do you mean?" Claire asked.  
  
"I mean, what if they have snowmobiles, or even just skis or snowshoes. They are the hunters. From  
what I understand, the only thing they are NOT allowed is projectile weapons, except for the long  
bows." Alyx closed her eyes and tried not to shiver. "They could have thermal goggles, motion  
trackers, you name it."  
  
"Shit, kid. We should have considered that. It will change the timing of everything." Hobbes  
rubbed his face with his mittened hand.  
  
"Hobbes, it's too late now. We'll alter the plan if we need to," Darien stated. "It's not like it  
would be the first time we've fubared a mission and still been successful."  
  
"Good point, partner. Let's get moving. Plow the road, kid." Hobbes gestured at Alyx.  
  
This was their first trick. They'd slogged through the snow to get to here as a precaution, but now  
they were pretty sure they were out of sight. Alyx moved to the front of the group, where she  
focused on forming a wedge out of a section of air and pushing it through the snow. Just like a  
snowplow. She left the tightly-packed bottom layer in place, which covered most of the items they  
could trip over. Now they were able to walk with some speed and make the time they needed to, which  
would be more than those hunting them would expect given the weather. Behind them, the piles of snow  
conveniently collapsed back into the pathway, hiding their trail.  
  
"I found the guy who recognized Darien," Alyx said, a cloud of her breath forming about her. It was  
very cold out. "But I don't know who he is."  
  
"Describe him," Darien said to her.  
  
"I can do better than that." She sent the image of him into their minds so they could all see him.  
  
Both Darien and Bobby recognized him. "Well, well. Moving up in the world, is he?"  
  
"Jeez, all this because of him?" Darien groaned.  
  
"Could you fill in us girls?" Claire asked in confusion. The image had meant nothing to her.  
  
"He's a small-time schmuck who was doing goon duty on a job, what, a year ago?" Hobbes turned  
slightly to look at Darien.  
  
"Yeah, about that. The first time we met Kate Easton. We arrested him, but he must have cut a deal  
and gotten loose." He shook his head. "It's no wonder he recognized me; we had such a nice  
conversation that one day."  
  
"He obviously got new employers," Claire commented a bit wryly.  
  
"Unless he worked for them all along and was doing the goon thing to get to Kate," Alyx tossed off,  
a bit absentmindedly.  
  
"Kid, stop thinking. You're scaring me," Hobbes said half-seriously. Between his paranoia and all  
the conspiracies he did know about, having another one thrown at him made his head hurt. Either  
that or it was the remains of his hangover.  
  
Alyx snickered and just kept moving, plowing the road before them.  
  
After about an hour, Claire stumbled and was caught by Darien. "Rest, please," she requested  
quietly. They had no trouble hearing her. Because of the conditions, they were staying within a  
step or two of each other. Otherwise, they might get lost real quick.  
  
"Mmmm. Yeah. Should check the map anyway and make sure we're still on course." Hobbes directed  
them off to one side of the path they were making, towards a fair sized pine tree that would give  
them some limited cover while they took a break. With a sweep of her mind, Alyx cleared away most  
of the snow, revealing the pine needles beneath. They wanted no part of the frostbite that was all  
too likely out here, and were doing everything they could to stave it off. Claire slid the backpack  
off and set it before her on the ground. Hobbes retrieved both the map and the compass and worked on  
checking their location.  
  
"Damn, I'm thirsty," Claire said, looking around in dismay at all the snow.  
  
Darien scooped up a mittenful. "Ummm, this is water, right?"  
  
Claire shook her head. "Technically yes, but snow and ice would lower our body temperatures too  
much if we used them for a water source."  
  
Alyx was leaning against the trunk of the tree enjoying the pervading scent of pine. "Didn't they  
toss a metal cup in the kit?"  
  
Claire searched for it and handed it to Alyx. "Why?"  
  
Alyx removed her gloves and packed some snow in the cup. Concentrating, she convinced the snow to  
melt and then the water to warm.  
  
"Alyx, even melted, it'll be too cold... Oh." Claire noticed the steam now coming from the mug as  
Alyx handed it to her. "How do you do that?"  
  
"I was shooting for blood temp," Alyx said about the water. "As to how, the same way I make the  
wedge to move the snow, sort of."  
  
"Like when you repaired the tire that one time. You melted the rubber," Darien added. He still had  
no real idea how she did this stuff, but had come to appreciate her abilities. They'd saved his ass  
on more than one occasion.  
  
Alyx nodded. "Since I can feel the molecules, I just make then move faster."  
  
"Which, in the case of snow, makes water." Claire handed the now-empty cup back to Alyx. "One for  
everyone, at least."  
  
Hobbes came back under the tree in time to see Alyx do her trick again. "We're on the right path,  
but we're not making as good a time as I hoped. Think you guys can push it a bit this next leg? We  
need to make that spot on time, especially if the kid is right about them not being stuck on foot."  
  
"Don't have much choice, do we?" Darien said as he finished his share of water. He handed the cup  
to Alyx, who set one up for Hobbes.  
  
"Sure we do. We could sit right here and wait for them to find us. We'd get killed, but it would be  
sure to ruin their fun." Alyx handed the cup to Hobbes, who thanked her with a nod.  
  
"Another option, please." Darien hated being backed into a corner, even though he seemed to spend  
a inordinate amount of time there lately.  
  
"This plan was our other option, remember, Fawkes?" Hobbes repacked the map and compass while Alyx  
took her turn at getting a drink.  
  
Claire looked over at Alyx, who had begun to shiver. "Are you all right?"  
  
"J...j...just cold. As usual." She downed her water and then rinsed out the cup with some snow.  
She shoved it back in the pack and hefted it herself.  
  
"No, kid, let Fawkes take it. You have enough work to do." Hobbes removed it from her grip and  
handed it to Darien, who shrugged it on without argument.  
  
Climbing out from under the tree branches, Alyx closed her eyes, rebuilt her wedge, and began  
shoving it through the snow. There was little talk among them for the next couple of hours, and by  
then the hounds had been released and were searching for them.  
  
After another water-and-orientation break, they got moving again. They had miles to make and a  
hidey-hole to find. After another hour of hard walking, it was Alyx who stumbled and went to her  
hands and knees unexpectedly. Bobby nearly walked right over her, he was following so close behind.  
  
"Kid?" He went to his knees next to her.  
  
"Ah, hell," she muttered. She knew what was happening, could feel that ache developing deep between  
her eyes. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to convince it to back away for a bit,  
just a little while.  
  
"Come on, kid. You need to get up." She nodded, and Hobbes helped her get back onto her knees  
first. She swayed in place for a moment and then, with Bobby's hand holding her arm, got to her  
feet.  
  
"Sorry about that." She tipped her head to the side and then pulled off her hat.  
  
"Kid, put that thing back on. I like your ears where they are." Bobby put force behind his words,  
but kept from yelling.  
  
"Shit. Incoming." She backed away, dragging Hobbes with her off their trail and behind a tree.  
Darien and Claire followed, though they were not quite sure why. Within seconds, though, even they  
could hear the voices. Alyx quickly hid their trail and pulled Hobbes and Claire close. "This  
should be interesting," she commented, quicksilvering the three of them.  
  
Darien followed suit, doing himself. Alyx realized a problem immediately, as the falling snow began  
adhere to them, piling on shoulders and heads. *Down,* she sent to all of them. *I'll fake  
something.*  
  
They all huddled down on the ground. Alyx convinced snow to shift and cover the lot of them in a  
thin layer. Now they should look like nothing more than a snow-covered lump in this weather. It was  
less than five minutes before four men on skis came by. One passed within a couple of feet of them,  
and all of them were wearing thermal goggles.  
  
"I thought you said the signal was coming from here," one of them said in complaint.  
  
"It still does," said a second guy, holding the familiar-looking tracking device. He whapped it in  
the side and grumbled to himself. "Must be the cold. Screwing with the electronics. Spread out and  
search the area."  
  
Alyx gritted her teeth, reached out with her mind, and fried the thing. It would never pick up  
another signal. Now they just had to wait for them to move on. She kept a light watch on their  
minds. When they had finally moved off far enough, though just barely, Alyx shook off both the  
quicksilver and the snow and rushed to Darien.  
  
"Drop it, Dare."  
  
He did so with a groan, as Claire grabbed his wrist and checked the monitor. "Three left," she  
announced.  
  
"I know," Darien grouched, the headache making itself known. "I'm hoping Alyx solved the problem,  
or things could get ugly."  
  
Alyx was already working on it. She peeled the backpack off of him and dug out the pen she had  
decided to use for this. She had sterilized and checked it out last night; it worked perfectly then.  
  
"You brought counteragent?" Claire sounded surprised.  
  
Alyx nodded. "Two vials."  
  
"Alyx, I'm not sure what would happen to the counteragent if it were frozen." These were not  
exactly the best conditions to run new tests.  
  
Alyx laughed and pulled off her gloves, then her heavy sweater. She had borrowed one of Darien's  
long-sleeved shirts, under which she had a tank top and then a sports bra. With so many layers on,  
the bad guys had been able to feel very little. With a bit of squirming and some grumbling about  
the cold air, she pulled one perfectly thawed vial of counteragent from where she had hidden it --  
between her breasts in the bra. "You don't want to know where the other one is, but it's thawed as  
well." She handed both the vial and pen to Claire, who went to work on prepping Darien for an  
injection. Several actually. The 'pen' was designed to inject fast-acting poisons, and only had a  
very small well. It would take at least three shots to get him back to full green.  
  
Alyx checked for the minds of the guys who had passed them, and found them still moving away,  
though at an angle. Alyx checked over her sweater, and then all the clothes the resort had  
provided, looking for bugs. Hers came up clean.  
  
"What, kid?" Hobbes asked as she turned to him. He felt something wash across him. It didn't hurt,  
but it did make the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, much like when he knew someone was  
watching him but couldn't see where they were.  
  
"You heard them. One of us is wearing a tracker. I fried their machine, but others may have them as  
well." She gave Hobbes a smile. "You're clean."  
  
She turned to Claire, who was working on injection number two, and found one in her left boot,  
which she fried. Double checking, she found no others on her. Turning to Darien, she found not one,  
but three. One sewn into the lining of his hat, one in the material of the backpack that was between  
his knees, and one in his right wrist. That made her do a double-take. Alyx knew about the monitor,  
of course, but hadn't been informed about the tracking device. Neither had Darien, she suspected.  
After a moment's debate, she decided against mentioning it for now. She wasn't happy to learn that  
Darien had an electronic leash he didn't know about.  
  
She fried the two other trackers and then checked them all once again, finding them clean. "Hobbes,  
I found three, all on different frequencies. I'm willing to bet there are at least two other groups  
who know about them."  
  
"So they'll all have our general location, at the very least." Hobbes growled. "This sucks." He  
turned to Claire and Darien. "We need to move, now."  
  
Darien got to his feet as Claire handed the vial back to Alyx, who returned it to its spot and  
wiggled back into the sweater. Darien slid the backpack on when Claire handed it to him. "We're  
ready."  
  
"Okay, kid. You know where we need to get; think you can get us around the foursome?" Hobbes  
didn't want to change the plan any more than necessary.  
  
"Yeah." She stuffed her hat into one pocket of the pants; she wanted to be able to hear. She got  
moving, once again plowing through the snow. This time Hobbes had Darien go second, while he took  
the rear. He might as well put both his training and paranoia to work on covering their asses.  
  
They walked in silence for a while, as Alyx pushed the pace as best she could. She did have the  
shortest legs of the bunch, and was also doing the most work. Her head was beginning to pound in  
time to her heartbeat and it was distracting. Twice she nearly lost her hold on the wedge, but she  
kept it together. When she stumbled, Darien caught her with a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"You okay?"  
  
"No, but that's not gonna stop me," Alyx replied.  
  
Darien considered for a moment; he was still hurt from their 'talk' last night, but knew he  
couldn't let it interfere with the work, with surviving this. "How can I help?"  
  
She set her hand atop his for a moment. "Keep me moving. Talk to me." She needed a distraction from  
the pain.  
  
"Uh, okay. About what?" Darien kept the hand on her shoulder for the moment and shifted a bit  
closer to her.  
  
"Anything. How about New Year's? Where did you guys end up going?" Alyx was curious. The three of  
them seemed to enjoy spending time together, and she wondered what it was they had found in common.  
Even with Darien and Bobby having been partners for almost two years now, they were still very  
different people. And Claire... well, on the surface, she and Claire should be better suited to one  
another, but except for the beginnings of some interesting research down in the Keep, they hadn't  
really found a balance point and she wondered if it was herself that was the problem.  
  
"You sure?" When she nodded, he began. "We ended up down at Belmont Park for the evening. They do  
a big celebration every year. I even got the Keep on the roller coaster." He continued on,  
describing pretty much the entire night, including the kiss on the cheek Claire gave to Bobby at  
midnight. Then he began to choose things at random and just continued with a quiet stream of   
words. That gained them another ninety minutes or so of walking.  
  
"We're close, kid. You gonna make it?" Hobbes didn't shout, but it was close. The snow had let up  
a bit, increasing visibility, but the wind had picked up, making it seem even colder than it was.  
  
It was enough to break Alyx out of her zombie-like walk. She gone into autopilot, letting Darien's  
voice keep her moving while not doing much more than keeping the wedge in place and putting one  
foot in front of the other. Hobbes' words snapped her out of it. A pitiful "Uh-oh" was all the  
warning she managed before collapsing into the snow.  
  
Darien crouched beside her, but was afraid to move her. Claire joined him, noting that she was  
flushed and far warmer than she should be. "Alyx, wake up."  
  
That earned a groan. "Headache," she mumbled. "Sorry."  
  
Hobbes grunted. They had made it this far. It was better than he'd expected. Now, to find that  
hidey-hole. "Claire stay with her and see if you can get her up out of the snow. Fawkes, with me.  
We have to find that landmark."  
  
Darien gave Alyx and Claire one last look before following Hobbes into the falling snow. They hiked  
a good fifteen minutes -- their movement was slowed without Alyx to break trail for them -- before  
Hobbes was certain they were in the right area. The trees thinned and the ground became more  
uneven. Boulders covered in snow appeared.  
  
"All right, Fawkes. You know what we're looking for, just be careful." They were in an area of the  
resort that contained a small river -- currently frozen -- that was bordered by a broken cliff of  
granite on one side. And that meant caves. They were hoping to find an unoccupied one that they  
could hole up in until nightfall. He hadn't realized how difficult it would be to spot them with  
snow covering everything, and he should have. It had been a while since he'd done any missions in  
weather such as this.  
  
Darien moved off a few steps so that they could cover more ground. He noticed what looked like a  
pile of rocks and brush that might just be what they were looking for. He hit the bushes a few  
times to knock the excess snow off, then pushed his way through. There was a cave in there, but it  
was looking too small for what they wanted.  
  
He forced his way through and was crouching down to check out the darkened opening when the ground  
crumbled beneath him. He found himself falling. The fall itself was no more than a couple of feet,  
but he landed on a slope and tumbled for what seemed like forever, before fetching up against a  
fair sized rock that protruded out from the wall.  
  
"Ah, crap." He took a moment to allow the world to stop spinning and to wait for the nausea that  
assaulted him to make up its mind. He was ignoring the pain for now, but knew he'd have to pay  
attention to it soon. "Hobbes," he croaked.  
  
He cleared his throat, not wanting to think about the pain that ripped through his head and side as  
he did so. "Hobbes!" he shouted louder, but still received no reply. He began to shift slowly. He  
was pretty sure he hadn't broken anything, but wanted to be sure before attempting to stand.  
Holding one hand above his head, he carefully got to his feet, and was pleased to find he could  
actually stand without hitting his head, though the ceiling was mere inches above him.  
  
There was just barely enough light leaking in from above to give him an idea of where he was. The  
cave was pretty small, five by five maybe, and with a slope -- the one he'd tumbled down -- that  
was fairly steep. The roof also lowered for the slope, and he would be forced to walk doubled over  
to get out.  
  
Crouching down so that he could see up the slope, he discovered it was crust of snow that had  
collapsed and dumped him down here. There were a few blown-in leaves, but for the most part the  
place was dry and clean thanks to the bushes screening the entrance. He hoped this would work,  
because he didn't think he'd be going much further.  
  
"Fawkes, where the hell are you?" Hobbes shouted from somewhere nearby.  
  
"Down here!" Darien replied as loud as he could. A few seconds later, Hobbes stuck his head through  
the brush.  
  
"Fawkes, you were supposed to just find a cave, not go spelunking." Cautiously, he made his way  
down the slope. When he got a decent look at his partner, he noted the thin trail of blood running  
down the side of his face and neck. "Found the place with your head, I take it?"  
  
"Huh?" Darien put his hand to where his head hurt the most, and was not pleased to see it come  
away bloody. "Yeah, looks that way. Will this do? I think I'm gonna need a break."  
  
"Lucky you didn't break your fool head," Hobbes muttered, but he looked over the small cave with  
satisfaction. "This'll do." He looked at Darien again. He moved away, up the slope, and came back  
with a double handful of tightly-packed snow. "All right, I want you to stay here while I get the  
girls. Put this on your head wound 'til the Keep can check it." He encouraged Darien to sit, and  
got the snowball on his head with a bit more persuasion. "Stay awake. I'll be back in twenty  
minutes."  
  
Darien tried to protest. "I'm fine...."  
  
"Stay," Hobbes barked. When it was obvious Darien had acquiesced, he headed back up the slope and  
back towards where he had left the rest of their little group.  
  
  
  
  
Claire had watched the two men disappear into the swirling snow, then turned back to Alyx, who was  
trying to return to the land of the living without much success. "Come on, Alyx, you need to get  
up." Claire tried to get her arms under Alyx's shoulders, but the smaller woman jerked away with a  
squeal.  
  
"Don't touch me, damn it," Alyx snarled from a crouch a few feet away. Her head hurt like crazy and  
she just wanted to get away from the pain. Away from the scenes in her mind that the hurt and  
exhaustion had inspired, images that had been bothering her more and more lately as she was taught  
more and more creative ways of causing other people pain. Making her become more and more like  
'him.'  
  
"Alyx?" Claire wasn't too sure what was happening. Alyx was on her hands and knees, shaking, with  
a glazed look in her eyes that Claire recognized as one of her severe headaches. But what was going  
on in her mind, she had no idea. Moving slowly, so as not to frighten her, Claire got within a  
couple feet and brought up her hand, intending to set it on Alyx's shoulder. Suddenly, she found  
herself unable to move it. "Ummm, Alyx, could you let go of my hand?"  
  
Considering what she'd been about to do, just holding the offending hand in place was the safest  
course. Part of Alyx wanted to cower and duck, while the other half had wanted to react as she had  
been recently trained, with violence. She'd darn near flung the hand, owner and all, into the  
nearest tree to get it away from her. She closed her eyes and forced herself to push the pain  
aside. Strove to put the images, the fears, and the newly-trained reactions into that corner of her  
mind where she tried to keep them locked away, and from which they had been escaping all too often  
recently. She knew there was someone nearby, but had trouble determining who it was, friend or foe;  
there was too much conflicting information running through her head.  
  
'Focus, you fool,' she yelled at herself mentally. It took another long moment, but she was finally  
able to open her eyes and see what was before her. Gently, she released Claire's arm. "I'm sorry."  
  
"Alyx, talk to me," Claire said after she had lowered her arm, making sure it still worked like it  
should. That was the first time she'd been at the receiving end of Alyx's abilities. She'd seen  
them used, but never on her before, and it reminded her of the first time Darien had quicksilvered  
her arm. An odd combination of clinical observation, amazement, and downright fear.  
  
Alyx rubbed the side of her head. She realized what she was doing this time and knew what it meant.  
Would that part of her life never leave her alone? "I'm sorry," she repeated, not sure what else to  
say.  
  
Claire shook her head. "Don't be, just tell me what's going on so I can help." Hoping it was safe,  
she moved closer and helped Alyx to her feet. It was the hint of fear in her eyes that worried  
Claire. Alyx had been many things over the months, but never afraid. She brought her hand up to  
brush some snow off of Alyx and watched as she flinched again, though not nearly as badly as  
before. That was enough to put a few pieces of the puzzle together. "Did he hit you often?"  
  
Alyx froze, looking like that proverbial deer caught in the headlights, then shook her head. "It  
doesn't matter now. I'm not that person any more." There was harsh laughter. "She may be dead, but  
the memories linger on."  
  
Claire was unsure what to say. This explained a few things about Alyx, including her continuing  
distrust of everyone, even after all this time. "But you are the same person, Alyx. It was never  
intended that we take who you are away from you."  
  
"Claire, as usual you have no idea what you are talking about. Thanks to the lovely training I'm  
being given, I'm becoming more and more like what I hate the most every day." She shuddered. "I  
wanted to flatten you, make you a pretty smear on the nearest tree. The way I learn... The fat  
man's training is backfiring. I have control, but... but I don't know who I am. Some days it scares  
me."  
  
Claire understood, to a degree anyway. She'd heard of something similar to this with severe memory  
loss victims, with MIAs, and with some placed in witness protection programs. Trying to adapt to  
the new self was sometimes difficult, especially for those with very high intelligence and strong  
memory capabilities. She'd watched Darien go through the same process. "Alyx, it's all right.  
You'll find the balance point. It just takes time, and you haven't had much to yourself lately.  
Between work and the classes, you've been going almost non-stop since you... joined the Agency.  
It's not the life you knew, so it's understandable that you're a bit confused, even lost."  
  
Hobbes appeared then, so anything Alyx might have said was lost for the moment. Claire really  
wished his timing had been better. Five more minutes and she might have actually gotten Alyx to  
really open up for the first time since she had arrived. "Bobby, any luck?"  
  
"Yeah, both good and bad. Fawkes found a good spot, but he did it with his head." Hobbes looked  
from one woman to the other, wondering what had been going on. The kid still didn't look too good,  
but she was up and moving. Claire shot him a look. "He's fine. It's not too far." He moved a few  
steps closer as he noticed the kid starting to sway, reaching out to help her, only to have her  
shudder and step away.  
  
"Bobby, leave her be for now," Claire said, moving to Alyx's side. "Her control is a little shaky  
at the moment."  
  
"Uh, sure. Come on, it's this way." He put his hand on Claire's back and got her moving in the  
right direction; his trail was actually pretty easy to see, though filling in rapidly. "Kid, can  
you tell me if anyone is near?"  
  
Alyx followed a couple steps behind Bobby and he slowed to be beside her. "Ummm, not right now. My  
head hurts a bit too much at the moment. They'd have to be on top of us for me to feel them." She  
hadn't even felt Bobby until he'd stepped into view. When she stumbled and he set a hand on her arm  
to steady her, she had to tell herself over and over that it was just Bobby and that Bobby wouldn't  
hurt her.  
  
"Kid, you'll be fine." Hobbes kept his voice soft so that only she could hear him. "I won't let  
nothing happen to you."  
  
She swallowed hard and looked at him, seeing something that made her believe him. "Thanks, Bobby."  
  
"Partners, kid." He got them moving a bit faster and they made decent time back to the cave. He  
held the brush aside for them. "Careful, the slope's steep."  
  
Claire went first, followed by Alyx, who paused in a crouch near the top of the slope until Bobby  
was also inside. It was tight with both of them there, but necessary for the moment. With her hand  
to her forehead in anticipation of the increased pain, she wiped away their trail and then put snow  
back on the bushes, effectively hiding the entrance completely. She groaned and leaned against the  
wall for a moment as the throbbing in her head increased.  
  
"Let's get you inside, kid." He helped her down the slope until they were finally in the snug cave  
below. Claire was already taking a look at Darien with the small flashlight that had been in the  
gear.  
  
Alyx could smell blood, but was so far gone in her own pain that for once she could not feel his.  
Either that, or her headache was so bad partially because of his. She collapsed onto the  
hard-packed dirt floor with a sigh. While still cold, it was far more comfortable being out of the  
wind and the snow.  
  
"Well, it's a good thing you have a hard head, Darien." Claire was saying as she cleaned the small  
cut on his head. Head wounds always bled like crazy. "It doesn't look like you have more than a  
bump."  
  
Alyx shook her head trying to clear it. "Dare, you're still bleeding." She could smell it.  
  
"Darien?" Claire asked. Sometimes he was too stubborn for his own good.  
  
"Uh, I kinda whacked my side when the wall stopped me," Darien admitted. He hadn't checked it, for  
fear of discovering that he was indeed bleeding. The color of the sweater was dark enough to allow  
his wishful thinking to win out over his common sense.  
  
"Lie down," Claire ordered, and he didn't argue. She peeled up the layers of clothing to find the  
turtleneck and thermal shirt under his sweater soaked with blood. "Damn it," she muttered. She  
peeled off the soaked bandage and examined the wound as best as she could with the flashlight  
between her teeth.  
  
"Claire, let me hold the light," Hobbes said from nearby, and Claire handed it over to him. "How  
bad?"  
  
"It could be worse, I suppose. He just split it open. I can, maybe, convince the butterflies to  
hold, but I need something wrap it in." Claire explained as she gently probed at it. Luckily he  
hadn't split it open completely or it would be bleeding much worse.  
  
"I think I can help, but it will be anything but sterile," Alyx said from where she was sitting at  
the base of the slope.  
  
"Alyx, anything at this point," Claire admitted.  
  
"Okay, I'll need the flash in a minute." Even though she could see just fine with the little light  
that filtered in, she wanted to take no chances. She stripped out of the sweater, then the  
long-sleeved shirt, and finally pulled off her tank top. Leaving her in only her sports bra.  
  
"Alyx, what the devil are you doing?" Darien had no idea why she was trying to freeze herself by  
stripping, but relaxed a bit when she quickly pulled both the shirt and sweater back on.  
  
"Light, please." Hobbes came over and held the light for her. She shifted and got her knife out of  
her boot, opening it with a practiced motion. Starting at the bottom of the shirt and circling  
around, she cut it into one long strip from base to shoulders. When she was done, she had what  
looked like a fair sized strip of heavy gauze, about an inch wide. The straps of the tank could be  
used as padding underneath. Slipping the knife back into her boot, she held the remains of the  
shirt in her hands and concentrated. The quicksilver flowed over, around, and as far into the weave  
of the fabric as she could convince it to. She was hoping it would do as a sterilization technique.  
When she was finished, she handed everything over to Hobbes, who then helped Claire put Darien back  
together.  
  
"Alyx, that was brilliant. Guess my training worked." Claire began wrapping the 'gauze' around  
Darien's chest, as snugly as she could manage.  
  
Alyx laughed, but it quickly became a moan. "I need to sleep, guys."  
  
"We all do," Hobbes agreed. "You done there, Keepy?"  
  
Claire nodded and put Darien's clothes back in place. "It'll do."  
  
"Kid, come on over here. Ladies in the middle please." Hobbes said, helping Alyx to her feet and  
guiding her over to where Darien was again lying uncomfortably on the floor of the cave.  
  
Alyx lay down beside Darien, and Claire in front of her. Then Hobbes snuggled in next to Claire.  
This was neither the time nor the place for discomfort about sleeping arrangements. Not if they  
wanted to survive.  
  
After a few minutes of shifting so that everyone was as comfortable as possible, there was an  
audible sigh from Claire. "A blanket, just one bloody blanket."  
  
That got a laugh from everyone.  
  
"Kid, think you can wake us up in six hours?" Hobbes asked Alyx.  
  
"It shall be done, boss." She snuggled back against Darien, who had offered his arm for her to  
rest her sore head on, and closed her eyes. She could feel his other arm thrown across both herself  
and Claire. Stuffed between the two of them, she made herself relax and soon drifted off.  
  
  



	8. Chapter Eight

  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
Part 8  
  
Hobbes was happily dreaming of the beautiful woman his arms had been wrapped around when he fell  
asleep, so he was not really thrilled to have his fantasy of far more pleasurable activities  
interrupted. "Fawkes," he grumbled, "G'way. I'm sleeping."  
  
He heard a tired sigh and then, *Bobby, wake up would ya?*  
  
Having that voice in his head did the trick, and he opened his eyes to see the kid squatting next  
to him with the flashlight dimmed by her hands. "Kid? Time already?"  
  
"And then some. Come on, I got something to show you." Alyx backed away so he could get up.  
  
Hobbes eased out from under Claire's arm without disturbing her continuing slumber. Fawkes had   
already moved in closer at some point and was draped carelessly over her from behind. "What, kid?"  
  
"Outside. Let them sleep for now." Alyx handed him the flash and headed for the slope with him just  
a few steps behind.  
  
The first thing he noticed was the lack of falling snow and then the tracks that she had obviously  
made recently. "How long have you been awake?"  
  
"Hmmm? Oh, couple of hours I guess." She moved off, following her trail from before. "This way."  
  
"I'm guessing you're feeling better," Hobbes muttered, mostly to himself.  
  
Alyx chuckled. "That would be a safe assumption." She led him along the edge of the cliff, which  
slowly sloped upwards, creating an even steeper drop-off to their left. After about ten minutes,  
during which Hobbes was beginning to believe that she was taking him on a wild goose chase, she  
looked back at him and put a finger to her lips. She crouched down and moved closer to the edge.  
Hobbes joined her.  
  
"Good work, kid," he whispered. Below them was a campsite with a group of four men -- one of the  
'hounds' he was sure -- with a roaring fire, tents, skis off to one side, and food. "Thinking we  
might do a little thinning of the ranks?"  
  
"And getting some supplies," Alyx added. "I don't know about you, but I'm starved."  
  
Hobbes nodded. "I'm betting you already scouted a way down." She nodded. Hobbes debated for a  
moment waking the others, but with Fawkes hurt and Claire not as experienced in the field, he  
decided against it. "You got a plan?"  
  
"Beyond sneak in knock them out? No," Alyx answered honestly as she got to her feet and led him to  
the pathway she had scouted out. It was steep, but negotiable.  
  
One thing she had learned was that detailed plans had a way of blowing up big time where the three  
of them were involved. A rough outline and a back-up plan usually sufficed. They tried to cover all  
the possible contingencies in the beginning, provided they had time to, of course. Some days they  
didn't.  
  
"Not a half-bad plan. Think you can do the saran-wrap thing for the two of us?" Hobbes didn't see  
much reason to come up with a more detailed plan. The two of them could easily handle the four guys  
down there, especially with surprise on their side.  
  
"Certainly." She climbed down the rocks that held very little snow, the wind having blown most of   
it away, with Hobbes right behind her.  
  
Hobbes was rather impressed; for all that she had come into this with even less training then  
Fawkes -- yeah, being a thief did count as training -- she was doing quite well and picking up what  
needed to be done quickly. "So kid, how are you liking the work?"  
  
Alyx paused her climb for a moment, surprised at his question. Once she was moving again, she  
answered him. "Like? I don't know if I like it yet. It's so entirely different from what I was that  
I..." She changed the subject a bit then. "Bobby, when you were starting out, did you ever hit a  
point where you questioned what you were doing?"  
  
Hobbes wasn't quite sure what she was getting at. "What do you mean?"  
  
Alyx needed to be cautious about this. There were things she would not talk about -- might never  
talk about -- but she needed help with this. "I took Karate on and off for years, but it was only  
after my last child that I got serious about it. It was more for the self-discipline than anything  
else and, except in the dojo, I never used it. I didn't even compete, though my Sensei wanted me  
to." She got to the bottom and moved off carefully across the snow-covered ice, following her  
trail from earlier. "It wasn't 'til the Agency grabbed me that I ever used it against someone to  
hurt them."  
  
Hobbes caught on then; it was something a lot of recruits had to deal with. He knew the kid had  
been married, had kids of her own, none of which could really prepare her for the reality of  
working for the Agency in the field. As soon as they had crossed the river and were on non-slippery  
ground, he set a hand on her shoulder to stop her. "I understand, kid, and yeah, just about everyone  
hits this point. This job is dangerous, and you will eventually have to use whatever means necessary  
to save yourself or others. You've been overreacting in situations, haven't you?"  
  
Alyx nodded. "Big time, and it's been very difficult to control."  
  
He directed her over towards some trees so they would be a bit less conspicuous while they talked.  
He was trying to come up with a way to say what she needed to hear in terms she could relate to. It  
took a moment, but he came up with it. "Your kids, you'd do anything to protect them, right?"  
  
"Of course. You've seen this. But that's part of the problem; before, I would get between them and  
danger, but I wouldn't -- couldn't -- strike back. Now... now I wade in and send people screaming  
away in terror." Alyx was amazed she could meet his eyes as she spoke.  
  
Hobbes kind of wanted to ask for more details, but somehow knew she was already telling more than  
she really wanted to. "It's a big line to cross, and you can't go back, but only you can decide how  
far to cross it. I learned to kill at a young age, and even when I know it's a necessity it still  
bothers me. But -- and it's a big but -- you can't let it consume you." He looked her right in the  
eye. "I know this."  
  
She had been careful not to read him while they were talking, but something in his tone of voice,  
the look in his eyes, told her more than reading him ever could. Something had happened during his  
career, and it had consumed him. He was still dealing with the scars today. "How do I know, though?"  
  
"Kid, if you can live with it. That's how I know." He wasn't going to soften it up for her. "Can  
you live with what you did in Newport?"  
  
"Yes. I suppose I can."  
  
"How about Menkin? You said you wanted him dead. Do you still?" He knew she had to figure it out  
for herself. He could not do it for her, or tell her this or that point is where she should stop.  
  
"Not anymore, but at the time... He was going to hurt you, I had to stop him. Dead would stop  
him," Alyx said, still feeling a little confused.  
  
"But not necessary. You were trying to protect me, and you let your emotions get too involved." He  
could see in her eyes that it was true. "Thanks, for that. Next time, though, less emotion. Freak  
afterwards, like the rest of us do."  
  
She laughed quietly at that.  
  
"Does that help? This isn't exactly my thing, you know." He'd never been all that good with words,  
with explaining things that couldn't really be put into words, but he realized there wasn't anyone  
else. Fawkes certainly couldn't help, not with this, and the Official hadn't been in the field in  
decades and already scrutinized everything she did with a gimlet eye.  
  
"More than you know, Bobby." She still had things to figure out, but he'd given her that elusive  
starting place that she hadn't been able to find on her own. She'd come to a turning point in her  
life, and only she could decide which turn, if any, she would take. "Thanks."  
  
"You're welcome. Now, let's go eliminate some hunters and get dinner. I don't want to listen to  
Fawkes' stomach growl all night long."  
  
Alyx chuckled as they moved off. "It is a bit... ummm, vocal, isn't it?"  
  
"Tell me about it. Why do you think we always have snacks and crap in the van?" Hobbes watched her  
carefully as she led the way through the trees to the clearing where they'd spotted the camp.  
"Kid..." Having her alone, he decided now might be the best time to get her side of what was going  
on between her and Fawkes.  
  
He was broadcasting again and Alyx wanted to forestall this -- to her -- unnecessary discussion. "I  
meant what I said Bobby. When we get back, I'll tell the 'Fish to yank me from your cases. I'm not  
helping that much, and the way I'm being trained they could pair me with anyone." Her voice was  
soft, just loud enough for him to hear.  
  
"Hell, kid, that's the last thing I want. It'll happen soon enough at it is." He knew it was true.  
At this rate, and with her extra talents, she was going to be one hell of an agent. The Official  
would be a fool to constantly pair her with himself and Fawkes, and one thing the Official never  
was, was a fool. He closed the short distance between them so that he wouldn't need to speak any  
louder than necessary. "I don't want to see either of you getting hurt. Even becoming friends in  
this line of work is dangerous; more than that..." He trailed off as she turned to look at him over  
her shoulder.  
  
"I know, in ways you can't imagine, but I also can't...I won't change the way he feels. That would  
do more harm than just keeping a distance, and I think you know it." She caught the emotions that  
flickered across his face and knew her words were sinking in. "He wouldn't ask you to change how  
you feel, about either himself or Claire; he knows you won't. Don't back him into a corner, please."  
  
Hobbes shook his head, but in surprise. "Kid, sometimes you see too much."  
  
"Tell me about it." She stopped and crouched down, pointing towards the campsite that was now  
twenty or so yards away. Focusing on those settled around the fire, she knew all were wakeful,  
though only one was wide awake. The others had been passing around a bottle and were in various  
states of inebriation. "Why is it hunters always think getting drunk helps their aim?"  
  
Hobbes chuckled. "Never understood that myself. I'll take the two on the right?"  
  
"Sure." She set a hand on his shoulder. "Ready?"  
  
He nodded and tried not to shudder as the quicksilver flowed across him. He liked the advantage it  
provided, but the stuff itself still gave him the creeps. As soon as they were gone from sight,  
they took off at a run and charged into the camp. Hobbes arrived first and took out the one guy who  
was sober. The three who weren't started laughing and pointing at their buddy, who had just gone  
flying through the air for no reason. They didn't laugh for long, though; soon they were stretched  
out on the ground, unconscious, being tied hand and foot. Hobbes' quicksilver flaked away as he  
finished tying up the second one with his own scarf.  
  
"I got this, kid; you go through the stuff and yank out anything useful." Alyx appeared a few  
steps away as she ducked into one of the tents.  
  
She came out a moment later, dragging two stuffed knapsacks, and casually sat on one of the tied  
gentlemen as she began to go through them. Hobbes was searching through the pockets of the men and  
turned up the one item he'd been half-afraid he'd find. "Well, lookee here." He held up a tracking  
device for her inspection. "No wonder they are way the hell out here. How many others made it this  
far?"  
  
Alyx closed her eyes and dropped her shields completely. The voices surged in, but luckily many  
were either dozing or drunk; with a little concentration, she was able to get a vague idea of how  
close they were. "I'd say seven teams are within walking distance of us." She closed the shields  
and opened her eyes. "We were set up big time, Bobby."  
  
"There were, what, twenty teams actually participating?" Hobbes was making a pile of useless stuff  
off to one side.  
  
"Twenty-three four-man teams," Alyx answered. "I'd guess about half of them had trackers to follow  
us with. There's no other way there could be so many 'hounds' this close."  
  
"You fried the bugs around noon, which gave them an idea of where we were. It wouldn't be too hard  
to figure out where we might go. Those caves are a perfect spot to hole up. Damn it." Hobbes  
tossed a few more items aside and began to repack a borrowed backpack with stuff they wanted.  
  
"I kinda wish I hadn't fried the bugs," Alyx was saying as she ducked into the other tent to see  
what was inside.  
  
"Why?" Hobbes asked as she dragged out the sleeping bags as well as the longbow and quiver. "You  
know how to use that thing?"  
  
"It's been a few years, but yeah. Well enough, anyway. As to the bugs, we could have used them to  
lure the hounds into our traps instead of taking turns playing bait." She dragged one of the  
sleeping bags over to a bound gentleman and, with a little effort, got him stuffed inside.  
  
"Kid, what the hell are you doing?" Hobbes was more than a little confused.  
  
She looked at him as she moved onto the next guy. "I... I can't just let them freeze to death. If  
they had been killed during the fight, that would be one thing, but I just can't...."  
  
Hobbes interrupted. "I get it, kid, and while I may not agree, I understand." He continued to pack  
while she did what she could to give the men at least a chance to survive. That was a hell of a lot  
more than these guys had planned for them.  
  
From somewhere nearby, a static-laden voice was heard. "Nathan, what's your status? You find them  
yet? The boss wants to win this year."  
  
Hobbes looked over at Alyx who, after a quick mental search, pointed to where the sound was coming  
from. They hadn't noticed it because, during the fight, it had fallen into a shallow drift that was  
more than enough to hide it. It was one of those fancy ones that could be adjusted to any frequency.  
Ignoring the voice that was quickly rising to a shout, he turned the dial and began to pick up other  
voices. Other teams.  
  
"Kid, I think we found our lure." He was smiling.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Hobbes looked down at the pair curled around each other on the floor of the cave. He set the  
flashlight down and shrugged out of his backpack with a sigh. They'd packed both of them full with  
anything they might need. The load would get lighter as they went, as they used the various items  
to make their surprises. He unhooked the lantern they had borrowed and lit it, providing more than  
enough light for the small chamber.  
  
Alyx chuckled at the sight and set her pack and the bow down. "Care to do the honors, Hobbesy?"  
  
"But they look so cute. I wish I had a camera." He moved over to where Claire and Fawkes were  
tangled about each other for warmth. Setting a hand on Claire's shoulder, he shook her gently.  
"Time to wake up, Keepy."  
  
"B...Bobby?" She mumbled as she cracked her eyes open. When she realized she was curled about  
Darien, she gave a small 'eep' of surprise and sat up. When it became obvious that Bobby was trying  
not to laugh at her, she grumbled, "It's bloody cold in here. I was trying to keep warm."  
  
"Well get back here then." Darien said with a grin. He got himself up on his elbows and looked  
about. He saw the packs that Alyx was going through. "You guys went and had some fun without us. No  
fair."  
  
"Just a little recon. One set of hounds is out of the way." Hobbes offered a hand to help him up.  
"Hungry?"  
  
In reply was an impressive growl from the area of Darien's midsection. Hobbes turned to Alyx and  
both started to laugh.  
  
"Starved, but other needs must come first. How bad is it outside?" Claire asked as she moved  
towards the slope.  
  
"Not bad. No snow right now, but it'll be back. Just don't go too far," Alyx answered, grabbing a  
couple of power bars they'd swiped as well as a half-frozen bottle of Gatorade. Then she dug out  
the map and a real pen and headed up the slope herself.  
  
"Where's she going?" Darien asked as Hobbes passed him some of the food.  
  
"Huh? Oh, she's gonna try and figure out where the other teams are and put their locations on the  
map. The more we can avoid, the better." Hobbes answered sitting down. "We got some useful stuff  
for traps. This might actually work."  
  
Claire came back in then. "Of course it will work. We're brilliant." She grabbed a bottle of bright  
blue Gatorade and sat down between them. "Alyx is going to have a headache by the time she's done."  
  
"I know, but she offered, and it will make it easier for us. As well as this." He pulled out the  
radio and turned it on. The voice that wafted out was full of anger. "Someone is very unhappy we're  
still free. We think about half the teams have trackers. When the kid gets back with the map, we're  
gonna try and plan a route through that will bring us back to the Lodge just after the deadline."  
  
"And now we can listen in on them," Darien said nodding. "So we'll know their movements, to a  
degree anyway."  
  
"Are they all camped for the night?" Claire asked.  
  
"Near as we can tell," Hobbes answered, and turned at the sound of footsteps.  
  
Alyx stood up in the main room, rubbing her forehead. "Here you go. It's approximate, but should  
help." She sat down against one of the walls. "Give me fifteen minutes and I'll be ready to go."  
  
"You okay?" Darien realized he'd been asking her that a lot lately. "I'm starting to think I'm  
repeating myself."  
  
"That's because you are, partner. She's fine," Hobbes answered. "You worry too much, Fawkes. She  
can take care of herself."  
  
Claire was nodding in agreement. "She has to learn to deal with this on her own."  
  
"Well, except for the freezing-my-butt-off thing," Alyx said through chattering teeth as she moved  
over to join them. Darien wrapped an arm about her as she sat next to him. "Never again. Snow bad.  
Cold evil. Give me ninety degrees any day."  
  
That earned a laugh, even though they realized she was quite serious about it. "We'll figure out  
what's going on with you when we get home." Claire knew she wouldn't be thrilled with more tests,  
but it was the only way to figure out what the problem was. "Darien are you holding together?"  
  
He shrugged. "It hurts, no surprise there. I'll just have to be careful is all." He knew he was  
going to end up in a fight somewhere along the way between now and tomorrow morning. He just had to  
keep it together, not get beat up too much, and not use too much quicksilver.  
  
Hobbes snorted. "You, careful? That would be a first."  
  
Ten minutes later, when they walked out of the small cave, the snow had begun to fall again.  
  
  



	9. Chapter Nine

  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Part 9  
  
"Kid, take a break." Hobbes grabbed Alyx by the shoulder and refused to let go until she actually  
stopped. "The trap is set. Five minutes won't matter."  
  
With a sigh Alyx let herself sink down into the snow, like Claire and Darien had done minutes  
before, their breath steaming about them. "I just want this to work, Bobby."  
  
"We all do, Alyx, but wearing yourself out to get it done won't do any good." Claire had watched  
her work with a single-mindedness that worried her. Though she had kept the use of her abilities to  
a minimum -- she had cut a few corners by using them, but hadn't been blatant about it.  
  
Darien chuckled. "She just wants to get back and tell off the Fat Man." Not that he didn't as well,  
but he knew the Official might actually listen to her. Her threats often were anything but empty.  
  
"Good luck. Arguing with him and his pet Eberts rarely gets me anywhere," Hobbes admitted a bit  
ruefully.  
  
"Talk? Oh no, this goes way beyond talking. After this, I'm going to arrange a week of paid medical  
leave for all of us. This is bullshit. Tells us it's a vacation and sets us up as hunters' stew."   
Alyx just managed to keep her voice in control. "I wouldn't be nearly as pissed if he'd told us the  
truth." She pushed herself back to her feet and shivered. "I'll get this started."  
  
They had been working all night to set up traps along the route they were going to use to get out  
of here. The rules had been very specific; they could not go back to the lodge until the nine am  
deadline had passed, and once morning arrived the hunt would be in full swing again. Now it was  
just a matter of luring each of the teams they planned to eliminate into one of the traps. There  
had been no way to set up enough to catch all of them, but every team they distracted or outright  
stopped meant one less hunter to catch them.  
  
Alyx hefted the bow and swung the quiver over her back. They had eliminated one of the stolen  
backpacks entirely, and the other contained very little at this point. Mainly just the remaining  
food and drink, along with some odds and ends they hadn't used.  
  
"Alyx." Darien had gotten to his feet and moved over to her. When she turned and looked at him, he  
changed his mind about what he was going to say. He had been about to explain that this was just  
something the Official did, one of his ways of getting more work out of him and Hobbes that avoided  
the bitching and complaints  
beforehand. Complaining after didn't do much good, since the job was already done. He realized,  
though, that he had become complacent about such things, that he expected them, that he was  
accepting them as normal, and he shouldn't. It wasn't that long ago he'd have been as pissed as she  
was, but now... now he just sighed and did it. He wondered when that had happened.  
  
"You're right." He turned slightly to look at Hobbes. "Tricking us into this was not one of the  
'Fish's smarter ideas, but we're here, and I seriously doubt he knew about this part."  
  
"Fawkes, he knew the risks and thought we could handle it." Hobbes wasn't sure why he was  
defending the Official, but the look on their faces boded ill if... no, when they returned to San  
Diego. "We've dealt with tougher situations."  
  
"Oh, really, when was the last time we had eighty or so terrorists trying to kill us all at once  
with little or no way to defend ourselves, hmmmm?" Darien snapped back. Being treated like crap was  
commonplace at the Agency, but he was realizing that this was across the line.  
  
"Enough!" Claire shouted. "We're here now. Deal with it."  
  
Alyx turned to face Claire. "Not surprised you're not too upset, but then again, you knew about  
this, unlike the rest of us. When did he start prepping you about the weapons? Six weeks?"  
  
Claire was so surprised by the question, she actually answered. "Three months, but it's been in the  
works for a lot longer." Claire didn't like the looks on any of their faces. "He didn't get the  
tentative invite 'til three months ago. This has taken over a year of planning to pull off." She  
stopped, realizing every statement was just digging that hole even deeper. "Ah, crap," she muttered.  
  
"He's had this in the works for a year?" Hobbes heard the anger creeping into his voice and took a  
moment to calm down. It wasn't her fault after all.  
  
Amazingly enough, it was Darien who was the voice of reason. "Don't shoot the messenger, Hobbes.  
Claire did her job." Claire actually looked thankful he had come to her rescue. "Though I still  
don't like being set up."  
  
"Darien, if I had known you knew nothing about this, I would have argued against it. I assumed you  
had been briefed weeks ago, just as I was." She shook her head. "You all need a break, and I will  
back Alyx on the medical leave when we get back."  
  
For several minutes there was an uneasy silence between them, and then Hobbes cleared his throat.  
"Later on this, folks, first we have to get our asses out of this situation in one piece." He  
pointed through the trees. "Lead the way, kid. Let's get this bit of turnabout started."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
By the time dawn arrived, they had eliminated, or at least  
distracted, four teams along their route. Those had been the easy ones, though, and now the other  
teams were waking up and would begin to actively hunt them. It was a good bet that they would know  
they'd be heading back towards the Lodge. They had to go that way since that was how the game was  
run. They were heading towards their next target when one of the hounds found one of their victims  
and spread the word. Within minutes, the hunters had ceased to be separate teams who were competing  
against each other to catch the prey, and it had become a concerted effort by everyone to capture  
them. The 'hinds', however, didn't change their plan. The next two groups they were going after  
were still separated from each other and could still be led to their respective traps.  
  
"Okay kid, are they still in place?" Hobbes asked when they stopped for a moment.  
  
Alyx took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Opening her shields, she unconsciously flinched as the  
now awake and irritated minds were thrust into hers. Darien set a hand on her shoulder to hold her  
steady as she swayed. They were all getting a bit weary and still had several hours to get through  
before they had the slightest hope of resting.  
  
"Ummm, they're still in place and will be for a bit yet. They are awake." She snapped her shields  
shut and shook her head to clear it. She hated doing that, but it was the only real option right  
now. She sagged back against Darien, shivering. "The plan should still work."  
  
"Good. Fawkes, you're with me. We'll meet at the next checkpoint," Hobbes said to them.  
  
Darien tipped Alyx's face up to look at her; they were all tired, but she was looking downright  
exhausted at this point. There were a half dozen things he was tempted to say, but didn't. "Be  
careful."  
  
Alyx grinned and batted his hand away. "Me? We'll do just fine. Won't we Claire?"  
  
"They'll never know what hit them," Claire confirmed. For all that she was unused to this kind of  
work, she was enjoying it to a degree. It was a refreshing change from staring at slides or  
computer models down in the Keep.  
  
She and Alyx moved off into the windblown snow, heading for their target. It took them about ten  
minutes to reach the perimeter of the camp. The fools still had not set up any guards, even though  
they knew some of the other 'hounds' had been taken out of the game. Instead, they were stumbling  
around, making coffee, and  
half-heartedly packing up the tents and other gear. One of them made his way into the trees not far  
from where they were, obviously intent on dealing with a call of nature.  
  
Alyx grinned and pointed towards the gentleman. Claire nodded. Alyx moved from tree to tree until  
she was behind the guy. She waited until he was done and had turned around before stepping out from  
behind the trees.  
  
"Well, hello there," Alyx said in a soft voice.  
  
The guy looked startled for a moment and then recognized her. "Hey, come 'ere." He lunged for her,  
but tripped as she held his feet in place with her mind.  
  
*Claire, I'm on my way.* Alyx turned from the guy, who was  
spluttering in the snow, and ran for the campsite with him several yards behind her. She tore  
through the camp, heading out to where she would meet up with Claire, towards the first of the  
booby traps they had set up. At least one of them was fairly quick on the uptake; an arrow impacted  
a tree at chest level as she passed it. These guys were aiming to kill.  
  
She caught up with Claire, who was waiting just beyond the subtle markings on the ground that they  
had left for themselves. The men were so intent on following Alyx that they didn't notice the care  
she took with her steps to meet with Claire, but as soon as she was with her, Alyx spun about to  
watch.  
  
"Alyx, you all right?" Claire noted Alyx was flushed again.  
  
"All right?" she said between pants, waving teasingly at the guys as they came straight at them.  
One was trying to shout into his radio as he ran, so Alyx reached out with her mind and jammed it.  
Then they hit the trap. "I'm just great Keep."  
  
With a yelp and then screams of pain, two of their pursuers went down on the deadfall rigged  
beneath the layer of snow. Claire, for one instant, tried to go to the sounds of pain, but Alyx  
restrained her. Part of her wanted to rush to their aid as well, but she knew they didn't dare.  
Another arrow that she casually deflected away spurred them to move on.  
  
Running, they headed for trap number two with the remaining guys hot on their heels. A few more  
arrows flew by them, but without the accuracy that was necessary to do any harm. *You ready for  
this Claire?* Alyx asked her as they approached the next trap and turned to face the bad guys.  
  
"Ladies, I would suggest you stop running. It'll go much easier on you." The guy was tall and  
dark-haired, and wore a nasty smile that told Alyx more than enough. After what she and Claire had  
managed to do to them, this guy wanted more than to just catch them. They only needed to be brought  
in alive -- he could have all the fun he wanted first.  
  
"Easy?" Alyx asked is a sly voice. "Who wants it to be easy?"  
  
Both guys came for them then; Alyx slipped her hand into Claire's and gave it a squeeze. Claire was  
counting to herself. They had to be in just the right spot for this to work. "Now," she hissed under  
her breath.  
  
Alyx let the quicksilver flow over both of them, even as they dropped to the ground. Alyx triggered  
the trap, and the pine branch the four of them had carefully bent back and secured was let loose and  
flung itself around -- over Alyx and Claire -- to smash into the chests of both men. The impact sent  
them crashing back into the snow. When neither of them got up after a couple of minutes, Alyx  
stopped the flow of quicksilver and let it flake away as she moved to check on them. Claire knelt  
down to examine them quickly. One was simply unconscious and would probably wake up in a few  
minutes. The other, however, was wheezing in a way that suggested that he'd been seriously hurt.  
  
"Alyx, he might have a punctured lung," Claire said to her and watched as Alyx paled slightly.  
  
"Crap," she muttered. "And broken ankles back at the deadfall." She pulled the radio out of the  
guy's pocket and adjusted the frequency until she heard a particular voice wafting out. "Good  
morning, this would be the 'hind.' I suggest you come get Franklin's team before they all die of  
their injuries."  
  
For several minutes there was nothing but incoherent shouts. Then a single voice was heard. "Their  
location."  
  
"Map grid C-3, lower left corner. I would recommend haste, one might have a punctured lung." Alyx  
tossed the radio back towards the men, leaving it on so that those coming could triangulate on the  
signal if necessary. "We need to go, Claire." Alyx's voice was tight.  
  
Claire nodded, and together they moved off at a fast walk to the rendezvous point. She decided to  
speak up, to try and help. "It's not your fault. There was no way to know that would happen."  
  
"I know. It's just difficult for me to do things like... like that to people," Alyx admitted. It  
was odd; in some ways, she enjoyed the new things she was learning, the new disciplines, the new  
ways of thinking, but implementing them? That was the problem. She was slowly reconciling herself  
to the fact that she would have to use what she was being taught. That she was indeed capable of  
doing great degrees of harm with mind, body, and words. That at times she might be forced to choose  
one life over another. But she still didn't like it and it left her feeling cold inside.  
  
"Alyx, if it ever gets easy for you, then I'll worry," Claire said in honesty. She had read the  
reports on what had happened when Alyx had no control, before she'd been trained. About the time  
they had run the one and only test to try and increase her power, and about the resultant damage  
she had caused. Luckily, large portions of that had been blocked from her mind. According to the  
notes she'd received, some of Alyx's memories had been completely blocked off, and Claire couldn't  
disagree with the wisdom of that. If Alyx learned the truth about some things right now, it would  
probably destroy her. That was last thing Claire wanted to see happen.  
  
They stopped under the tree to wait for the guys to join them, surprised they weren't there yet.  
They themselves were overdue. After about ten minutes, during which Alyx began to shiver  
uncontrollably yet again, both became seriously worried.  
  
"Alyx?" Claire turned to her, trying to keep her voice neutral.  
  
"On it." Alyx closed her eyes and reached out, looking for the familiar minds of Hobbes and Darien.  
She found Hobbes first, very nearby and full of pain. She pushed away from the tree at a dead run  
with Claire right behind her. They found Hobbes just a dozen yards away, leaning against a tree and  
panting for breath. One arm was covered in blood from the biceps down, due to the arrow protruding  
through his arm. They rushed to his side and got him to sit.  
  
"Bobby..." Claire failed to keep the worry out of her voice as she examined his wound.  
  
"They got Fawkes." He looked up at Alyx. "They had thermals and caught him."  
  
  
"Come on, Fawkes. We've got work to do." Hobbes took off in the direction of the camp they were  
planning on breaking up. Theirs was actually a bit closer than the camp the girls were heading for.  
He and Fawkes should make the checkpoint well before they did.  
  
"I'm not sure I like splitting up," Darien said, not for the first time. This was not what the Keep  
usually spent her time doing, and Alyx... He let that thought trail off. Alyx was more than capable  
of taking care of both herself and Claire if there was a problem. For all that he knew she could  
do, he still felt an undeniable urge to protect her that was at least partially caused by how young  
she looked. He really didn't want to think too hard about the other reasons, especially after their  
discussion two nights ago.  
  
"Fawkes, you could have said something when we planned this," Hobbes commented as he led the way  
through the trees. Okay, so the situation wasn't the best one they had ever been in, but it wasn't  
that bad, and so far they were ahead of the game. A few more to take out after these mooks and they  
could head back to the Lodge.  
  
"I did, but you all overruled me." Darien shook his head and ducked under a snow-covered branch.  
"Something is really bothering Alyx, lately."  
  
"You mean besides you?" Hobbes said, with a touch of humor.  
  
"Gee, thanks." Darien knew he was joking, mostly, but it still bothered him. "Yeah, besides me."  
  
"I know. We talked about it." Hobbes put his finger to his lips to remind Darien to keep his voice  
down. Without the kid with them, they couldn't communicate in silence. "I think she'll be okay."  
  
Darien was only partially surprised. Except for the 'getting  
involved' thing, Hobbes had taken the time recently to really work with Alyx. Instead of just  
giving orders, he often asked both their opinions on whatever plans had been made. It had taken  
Bobby almost a year to become that easy around Darien, but just a few months with Alyx, and the  
difference had to be the training she was being given. Hobbes was still senior, but he now tended  
to treat the two of them more as equals instead of relegating her to the sub-basement of the  
partnership. And some days, Darien felt like he was being left behind.  
  
Hobbes crouched down behind some brush and waved for Darien to do so as well. "Time for the  
see-through routine." They suspected this group was in on the tracker deal and wanted to handle  
them a bit differently. They only had one booby trap set up for them, and wanted to take out two of  
them here before luring the others away.  
  
Darien reached out to set a hand on Hobbes' shoulder and, after a moment to gather himself, let the  
quicksilver flow over both of them. As soon as they were gone, they split up to come into the camp  
from opposite sides. So it was with a great deal of surprise that Hobbes found himself with an  
arrow sticking through his arm and pinning him to a tree.  
  
"Well, I would never have believed it. I'd heard the rumors, but..." The gentleman who had shot him  
lifted the thermal goggles off his eyes and whistled. "Amazing."  
  
"Fawkes, they have thermals." Hobbes shouted even as the quicksilver finally flaked off of him.  
  
"Oh, he knows," the guy said, as Darien's unconscious body was brought into sight. "And we found  
your little trap. Cute."  
  
Hobbes growled and yanked hard enough to free his arm from the tree. He ignored the pain that  
threatened to put him to his knees and readied himself to charge at the guy. He was stopped when,  
at some signal he didn't catch, the ones holding Fawkes began to beat him. "I would suggest you  
cooperate."  
  
Hobbes held his place for a second, and then took off. The only way to help Fawkes was to get to  
the kid and the Keep. It wasn't likely they'd kill him. He hoped. For a moment his motion slowed,  
and he had to fight with himself over returning and attempting what would be a futile rescue  
attempt. Would the kid and Claire let them go and try to make the lodge? He considered for a moment  
as he leaned against a tree. He could feel the blood running down his arm, soaking through the  
layers of clothing to drip off the end of his gloved hand and onto the snow below. No, they would  
try and rescue the both of them, and probably fail in the process. He had to get to them.  
  
He forced himself to move, to ignore the dizziness that had begun to sneak its way in past his  
defenses. The injury wasn't that bad, but it must have hit an artery or something 'cause it was  
bleeding like crazy. He was really hoping no one had decided to follow him. He wasn't wasting any  
time trying to hide his trail and was simply taking the most direct route to the agreed checkpoint.  
Nearly there, he found himself fighting the dipping and spinning world and held himself upright with  
the nearest tree. Now would be a perfect time for the kid to poke herself into his head.  
  
That's when Alyx and Claire showed up and lowered him gently down into the snow. He managed to get  
out the bare minimum of what had happened before they hushed him.  
  
"Hobbesy, this is gonna hurt," Alyx said quietly.  
  
"Just do it, kid." Hobbes just wanted it over with at this point. He knew damn well it was going  
to hurt.  
  
Alyx quicksilvered her hand and set it over the feathered half of the shaft that was sticking out  
the front of his arm, watching as it frosted over. She glanced over at Claire. "Hold him still."  
  
Claire held his arm firmly and nodded when she was ready. Alyx grasped the shaft near his arm with  
one hand and the feathered end with the other. With a quick motion, she snapped the shaft, then  
drew it out of his arm and flung the pieces away. The blood flow increased by a surprising amount.  
"Alyx..."  
  
"Yeah, I know." She quicksilvered her hands and, after steeling herself to the pain she knew she  
was going to feel, set one on either side of his arm, sealing the wounds and stopping the bleeding  
for now. "Bobby, you need to tell us where Darien is."  
  
Hobbes had bitten his lip bloody when she'd snapped the arrow shaft, and then nearly did it again  
when she'd frosted his damn arm. Neither experience was one he wanted to repeat. "Kid, they have  
him and they were expecting us. They found our little trap." He tried to push himself to his feet  
only to be held in place by Claire.  
  
"Relax for a minute, Bobby." She could see the worry in his eyes, the concern for his partner, for  
Darien. Of all of them, Claire might be the only one to realize exactly how deeply Bobby cared for  
his partner, the lengths he would go to for him. The risks he'd take to protect them.  
  
"Bobby, we'll get him back," Alyx said quietly. "I promise." Closing her eyes, she reached for  
Darien, to find anger, pain, and despair. "He's alive, but hurt. You said they found the trap?"  
Hobbes nodded. "Okay, think you can get there and make sure it's still set?"  
  
He pushed himself to his feet and this time Claire didn't argue. "What you got in mind, kid?"  
  
"Claire will draw a couple away with a little help from me, and I'll get Darien." Alyx was staring  
off into the distance.  
  
"Kid, are you sure?" Hobbes didn't want her to be forced into a situation that she wasn't ready  
for.  
  
"I'm sure, Bobby." She gave him a weak smile. "We get out of this together. Watch the arm."  
  
Hobbes shook his head and then looked at Claire, whose lips were pressed tightly together. "Alyx,  
they shouldn't hurt him, maybe we should just wait. Head back to the Lodge. They'll bring him in  
once the deadline has passed." She didn't make this suggestion lightly -- she was as worried as  
they -- but she had to be the practical one. The devil's advocate.  
  
"Keep, they knew we were coming. Do you really think they're just gonna feed him and coddle him  
until it's time to head back?" Maybe she really didn't realize how dangerous the situation was.  
Hell, they had no guarantee that they'd survive even if they made it back. It was entirely possible  
that the ones running this show would kill them as soon as they showed up.  
  
"Claire, they are most likely going to try and find out who he really is, who we are," Alyx added  
in a soft voice. "He's already hurt; I don't want to see him suffer more."  
  
"All right," Claire said in defeat. How could she argue with that? It was her job to keep him  
healthy and sane. Now was not the time to back away, even if it had gotten a lot more dangerous.  
"What do you need me to do?"  
  
  
  
Darien came to with a feeling of dread. His side was on fire and he could feel the blood soaking  
through, not only his shirts, but into the pants he wore. His shoulders screamed at him as he tried  
to shift and get more comfortable. His hands were tied together over his head and a thin nylon cord  
reached up and over a branch of the tree. His feet were just barely touching the ground. He  
gingerly put his full weight down onto the balls of his feet and was able to relieve the pressure  
on his shoulders by a small amount. His ears were ringing, and it took him a moment to remember  
what had happened.  
  
He'd circled around the camp, intending to make his way in and take out a couple of them before  
they figured out anyone was there, only to have a soft voice speak behind him. "Interesting, if  
futile." Then there had been pain. Like when Alyx had zapped him, only worse, driving him to his  
knees. Then the slam of...something...into the side of his face, before he fell into the welcome  
darkness.  
  
He was beginning to wish he hadn't woken up.  
  
"Well, Mr. Harding, you're finally awake." The voice was full of nasty humor. "Or would you prefer  
to use your real name?"  
  
Darien opened his eyes and lifted his head to look at the gentleman before him. "Real name? Thought  
Harding was my real name. My mom's gonna be real upset about that."  
  
"Cute." The man casually punched Darien in the ribs, just above the knife wound, causing him to  
groan in pain. His legs collapsed, which nearly dislocated his shoulders. "Shall we try again? Your  
real name."  
  
Darien shuddered and wondered where the hell Hobbes was. "Harding," he got out through clenched  
teeth. "Gary Harding."  
  
The guy lashed out again, this time harder; causing Darien to try and double over. He grunted as  
the pain washed across him, sending bright white streamers of false light shooting behind his eyes.  
"Your Boss ran, just like a good hind should. You are alone, and I will get the information I want  
from you."  
  
"Bets?" an anger-filled voice snarled from nearby.  
  
Darien managed to focus in time to see one of the other men suddenly fly backwards for no apparent  
reason, his hands going to his shoulder once on the ground. Seconds later, an arrow appeared as the  
quicksilver coating it flaked off. Thermals were snapped into place as they began to look for the  
shooter of the arrow.  
  
"Find them!" was shouted by the guy in front of Darien. "How unusual, they're attempting a rescue."  
  
Off to one side an accented, "Hello boys," was heard as Claire suddenly appeared. With a shout, two  
of the men went after her, leaving Darien alone with his torturer.  
  
Claire ran as fast as she dared, as fast as she could in the heavy snow, making sure they stayed  
close enough to follow her. This had to go just right -- they only had one chance. "Come on, come  
on," she muttered under her breath. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw they were closer than she  
liked, but right next to each other like she needed them to be. She ignored their shouts to stop  
and put on an extra burst of speed as she reached her goal.  
  
"Now!" she shouted as she dove to the ground and slid several feet through the snow. As a  
precaution, she covered her head in her hands. She heard the creaking of the ropes -- they'd swiped  
them from one of the hounds -- and seconds later the solid thud and quickly cut off screams as the  
log they'd rigged hit the men solidly in the chests.  
  
"It's clear, Claire," Hobbes said, coming out from behind the tree where he had triggered the trap.  
He looked over at the guys, who were sleeping the sleep of the unconscious. He watched as Claire  
lifted her head and then got to her feet and moved to check on the men.  
  
"They'll live," she announced.  
  
"More than they deserve," Hobbes muttered. "Let's go." With Claire beside him, they headed back to  
the camp, where hopefully Alyx had freed Darien.  
  
  
  
"I know you're still there." He moved closer to Darien and slid his thermal goggles down over his  
eyes. "Come on out and make it easier on yourself."  
  
"Easier? Why would I want to make it easier?" Alyx let fly with another quicksilvered arrow, which  
brushed past his arm.  
  
"You missed." He turned to watch where the projectile had come from and was not surprised to see a  
figure move from behind one tree to another nearby.  
  
"Hmmm, yes I did. Guess I'll have to try again." She knew he could see her, wanted him to focus on  
her, to forget that Darien hung limply behind him.  
  
But he hadn't forgotten. Backing up, he pulled out a rather  
impressive knife and stepped to the side of Darien; the knife coming up to press against his  
stomach.  
  
Darien swallowed hard as the pain and fear combined to push his heart rate to an even higher level.  
On this occasion, he couldn't have stopped it even if he wanted to and the quicksilver came quickly.  
  
The guy saw this and uttered a surprised, "What the..." before he found himself unable to breathe.  
  
Alyx stepped out from behind the tree and let the quicksilver fall from her. She reached out with  
her mind, grabbed him by the neck, and squeezed. The guy's eyes widened at her sudden appearance  
and the knife he held fell to the snow at Darien's feet as the darkness closed in.  
  
"Al... Alyx." Darien got out past the pain. "Don't." He could see the anger, the rage on her face  
and in her eyes, and he knew what she wanted to do, would do if he didn't stop her.  
  
She couldn't see him, but she could feel what was going on in his mind. He truly didn't want her to  
take this step, truly thought it was unnecessary, truly felt she was so much more than the ruthless  
killer the Official seemed intent on turning her into. She found herself caught for a moment. It  
would be so simple to kill this bastard, save the world the trouble of having to deal with him  
until either fate or old age took notice of him and set him on his way. She closed her eyes,  
remembering, reminding herself of why she hated the use of force. Forced herself to look at who she  
used to be and why she'd chosen the path she had. To remember the little she recalled from the  
destruction of the lab and what she had chosen to do after. To die rather than use her abilities  
again. To never hurt anyone again. To never allow herself to be hurt again. To never be afraid  
again.  
  
Things had changed since making those vows. She had learned to care again -- perhaps more than she  
should -- and had used her abilities to hurt, but not randomly. She had used them to help far more  
than she had ever hurt, and if a few had been injured in the process, they were always those that  
were deserving of it. And the innocents she'd helped by standing between them and danger, by using  
those abilities to do what she'd always done. To defend. To protect. At this realization, something  
inside her loosened, something she'd been holding tight for long weeks now, something that had been  
causing her far more pain than any she had inflicted on those around her.  
  
She opened her eyes, amazed that only seconds had passed as she fought with herself and finally  
found that balance point within. Oh, there were still issues she would have to deal with, but for  
the time being she'd found a path to follow that she could live with. Releasing her victim so that  
he fell gasping into the snow, she stepped forward. "I would suggest you run. You are the hound no  
more."  
  
The guy believed her. Still trying to suck in air, he forced himself to his feet and staggered away  
from the camp.  
  
Alyx reached down to pick up the knife he'd dropped and, controlling it with her mind, cut the rope  
holding Darien upright. He collapsed, his legs unable to hold him, but Alyx caught him, going to her  
knees when his weight landed fully upon her. "Can you drop the quicksilver, please?" Even through  
the heavy clothes, she could feel the cold, and frost was quickly spreading across her shoulders  
towards her bare neck.  
  
Darien groaned as his hands came down around her neck, still tied together. "Ummm, maybe?" His  
heart was still pounding along and, with the pain each small movement created, he found it  
difficult to calm himself.  
  
*Easy,* she whispered in his mind. *You're safe.* She did her best to calm him, to reassure him,  
until finally the quicksilver dropped away. *Ah, Dare. I'm sorry.* She could feel the pain he was  
in. The dull ache from being hit in the face. The burning, fiery pain that was his side. The sharp  
pain that was building in the back of his head. Carefully, she shifted them so that he was lying in  
the snow and she was able to slip out of his arms. Once again reaching for the knife that he'd been  
threatened with, she cut the ropes binding his hands, easing the last of the discomfort it had been  
causing. She took his right hand and pushed up his sleeve to check the monitor and found it with  
three remaining green. They had used the last of the counteragent earlier during the raids they'd  
made on the other camps.  
  
And she knew he feared the quicksilver madness the way she feared herself.  
  
He opened his eyes to look at her. "Sorry, what for?" He was pleased to see a sense of calm that  
had been missing from her for many weeks now.  
  
"Not important." Breaking eye contact, she lifted the layers of clothing to look at the wound on  
his side. "Roll, please." He did with a groan. Everything was soaked with blood and she pulled out  
her butterfly knife and cut the jerry-rigged bandage away. It was serving no purpose at this point,  
and she needed to examine how much damage was done. "Crap," she muttered. It had been split open  
yet again, along the same section that his fall had done damage to. There were also the obvious red  
marks that would blossom into glorious bruises within a day or two. They had beaten him to try and  
get him to talk; she'd arrived in time to see one punch thrown, but it was now obvious that it was  
only one of many.  
  
"Get it over with, Alyx. It can't hurt much worse than it already does." He set one hand on her leg  
as she kneeled next to him and she took a moment to squeeze his hand before doing what was  
necessary. The pain of her quicksilvering the wound shut was not nearly as bad as he had expected.  
He already hurt far too much as it was to notice. His right cheek was numb at this point, which  
probably meant it was quite swollen. His shoulders were slowly beginning to feel like they were  
back where they belonged again, and his side... He didn't want to think about it. He was afraid he  
had a couple of cracked ribs to go with the bruises and blood.  
  
When he could speak again he asked, "Claire and Hobbes?"  
  
Alyx's eyes unfocused for a second. "Fine. On their way here." She helped him sit up and then ran  
a gentle hand over his swollen cheek bone. "You're a mess."  
  
"Yeah, well, guess it was my turn." Then he noticed. "Your hands aren't cold."  
  
"Hmmm, you're right." She stood up and helped him to his feet, but he couldn't quite support  
himself or stand upright without having his ribs bellow their discomfort at him. "I've got you."  
  
Darien managed a hoarse chuckle. "Right, you've got me. I must be nearly twice your weight."  
  
Wrapping her arm firmly about his back, she got him moving. "I hadn't noticed." True enough. He  
needed help, that was all that mattered, and she would do whatever was needed to provide him that  
help. Whether it was to carry him or just get those in their way out of it. "Whatever you need."  
  
Her words surprised him. Most days she seemed to be a step away from the rest of them and didn't  
seem to want to try to come closer. Though the revelations over the last few days had changed his  
mind. Now it seemed she stayed on the outside because she didn't want to interfere, didn't want to  
force her way into the friendships and relationships that had already been established before she  
was brought in. She was almost like that one kid in high school -- every high school had one --   
the kid who hung around the edges of the groups, hoping to get invited to participate in the fun  
that he saw them enjoying. Everyone knew him, would say 'hi' and maybe even consider him a friend,  
but he was never part of the group. Alyx, however, was staying outside by choice and he wondered  
what had taken him so long to see it. "Careful, I may take you up on that." His voice was soft.  
  
Alyx felt the gentle wave of emotions wash over and through her. His meaning was complex, but  
clear. She chose to laugh it off, to make the context less serious than he meant it. "Needs. Not  
wants, silly."  
  
"Sometimes they're the same thing," Darien responded, not allowing her to pass it off. She wouldn't  
be pushing him away so hard without a good reason; he just wished she felt comfortable enough with  
him to tell him why. Lying with her in that cave, he'd realized he'd rather have her nearby, in  
whatever manner, than have her go to another partner and be able to see her only on rare occasions.  
He liked the easy friendship that was developing between them, the working relationship that was  
turning out to be as good as the one he and Hobbes shared.  
  
Because of their shared ability, they'd discovered a common mindset when on a job. With the  
addition of her other talents, the three of them were swiftly becoming a well-oiled team. They  
often didn't even need to speak and just knew what to do. All these weeks of  
near-constant work had had some beneficial effect, in that even Hobbes was far more comfortable  
around her. Her abilities still set his paranoia off regularly, but he was dealing with it and not  
taking it out on her. Darien wanted no part of her leaving their little team.  
  
Alyx stopped, holding him tighter, and turned slightly to look at him. "I know."  
  
Claire and Hobbes came into view then and rushed to their sides. Claire put Darien's other arm  
around her shoulders to help support him. Bobby was holding his arm stiffly; Claire had scrounged  
some cloth from somewhere and wrapped it up tightly. "How'd we do, kid?"  
  
Alyx shrugged. "Darien's hurt pretty bad and needs a shot. They kept at him till he quicksilvered  
in defense. He had trouble dropping it."  
  
"And we're out of counteragent," Hobbes said with a sigh.  
"Everything is going just the same as always."  
  
That earned a pained chuckle from Darien. "Are we done yet? Can we go home?" Claire and Alyx got  
him moving again, even though all he wanted to do was lie down and moan, or demand some really good  
painkillers and escape reality for a while.  
  
"Soon," Alyx said. "Bobby, we're out of options and still have a couple of hours to kill."  
  
Hobbes nodded. "What are you thinking?"  
  
"We sneak these two as close as possible, and then you and I lead the remaining hounds a merry  
chase away from them. As soon as the deadline has arrived, they sneak into the Lodge and we make a  
run for it as well," Alyx answered. Darien immediately began to protest. She silenced him. "Dare,  
if necessary, you can quicksilver both of you to get in. We have counteragent in the room, as well  
as the medical gear."  
  
Claire looked around Darien to see Alyx. "He's too close to madness to quicksilver."  
  
Alyx shook her head. "The guys running this show may have plans for us. If we have to, we'll turn  
Darien's evil id on them." She felt Darien stiffen and sensed the fear that coursed through him.  
"Dare, on this occasion it's a weapon that we may need."  
  
"Fawkes, she's right. I doubt she likes the idea any more than you." He saw the pained look in her  
eyes and knew that much was true anyway. "It's a last resort only."  
  
Grudgingly, Darien nodded. "I'll do what's needed, for all of us."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  



	10. Chapter Ten

  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Part 10  
  
Alyx was sitting uncomfortably in a tree, waiting for Hobbes to appear, hopefully with a couple of  
mooks on his trail. They had gotten Darien and Claire as secure as possible and had been doing  
their best to lead any hounds who came too close away from their hiding place. Hobbes had nearly  
gotten caught once already, and Alyx had waded in to rescue him with little hesitation. She was  
getting very tired by this point and Hobbes wasn't doing much better. Twenty more minutes, then  
Claire and Darien could head for the Lodge and end this damn thing.  
  
She felt Hobbes long before she saw him; he was coming at a dead run straight along the path as  
planned. Scooting out a bit father along the branch, she took a deep breath and centered herself,  
watching the ground below her carefully. Hobbes went tearing by right underneath her, not even  
glancing up to make sure she was there. She could sense the three men chasing him and intended to  
stop them. Reaching out with her mind, she built one of her 'walls' across Hobbes' trail and held  
it steady. Two of the guys ran face first into it, stopping dead in surprise. The third pulled up  
short and looked about in suspicion. Alyx was too tired to play games any more, so she shoved him  
to the ground and held him there.  
  
Hobbes stepped out from behind the tree she was in -- he had circled around to join her -- and  
walked to the other two, taking them out with a couple of well-placed punches. The third guy was  
snoozing peacefully, thanks to a buried log that had connected with his head when he fell. Glancing  
up in the tree, he tried to figure out where she was and failed. "All right kid, you can show  
yourself now."  
  
Alyx slipped down the branches as she allowed the quicksilver to flake away. Without comment, she  
moved to help Hobbes drag the guys out of sight and then hide a large portion of the trail they had  
made. When they were done she took a moment to lean against a tree and pretend to rest.  
  
"Yeah, I'm tired too." Hobbes set a hand on her shoulder. "Any others nearby?"  
  
She closed her eyes and opened her shields. She was so tired she didn't even flinch at all the  
voices and emotions that were suddenly in her head. She simply slid down the trunk of the tree to  
sit in the snow without even realizing it. So many of them, the vast majority of them getting angry  
and frustrated at their continuing inability to catch the hinds, the injured hinds. They were all  
heading back towards the lodge, and were working together, to a degree anyway, to prevent the hinds  
from winning the game.  
  
"Kid, focus. We need to know where they are." Hobbes kept his voice steady. He could see the pain  
etched on her face as she tried to do what he still saw as the impossible. He was running out of  
energy himself, and his arm was nothing but a huge ache. He'd been using it far more than he  
should, and knew if he wasn't careful it would start bleeding again, but so far the fix-it job the  
Keep and the kid had done on it was holding.  
  
Alyx forced herself to concentrate. "They're all coming this way. They're really pissed off at this  
point." She shook her head, trying to get at least a direction for the nearer hounds, but without  
success. She was too tired, there were too many, and all seemed to be demanding her attention since  
they were focused on finding her. Her hands came up to her head and she whimpered.  
  
It didn't take Hobbes more than a second to figure out something was wrong, and he went to his  
knees in the snow beside her. "Don't do this, kid." He tried to think of what the Keeper would  
say. "Get your shields up." He reached out and set a hand on her shoulder. Her hand came up to  
grasp his wrist, and for an instant he was sure she was going to shock the hell out of him like  
she'd done to Fawkes, but instead she sighed and opened her eyes to look at him.  
  
"No need to worry Bobby. I knew it was you." With his help, she got to her feet. "Thanks."  
  
He gave her an odd look, seeing, for the first time in weeks, that the hint of sadness and anger  
that always seemed to be about her was gone. "You found it, kid. Didn't you?"  
  
She nodded. "More or less, but it won't do much good if we don't get out of this."  
  
"This is us, kid. We'll make it just fine," Hobbes said as they headed towards the Lodge. They  
still had to provide cover for Claire and Darien when they headed in.  
  
  
  
"Keep, how much longer?" Darien knew he was asking this way more then necessary, and probably  
irritating the hell out of her by doing so, but it was the only thing he could think of to say that  
didn't involve how much he hurt.  
  
"Five minutes less than the last time you asked," Claire answered with a sigh.  
  
"Sorry," he muttered, not sure what else to do. Waiting sucked, and he had never been known for his  
patience in situations like this. "Claire..."  
  
She turned to him expecting another series of complaints. "What now, Darien?"  
  
"I.... Thanks. This has got to be hard on you." He knew she was tough, but this was nothing like  
what she was used to. The other occasions she'd been out with them on missions usually involved her  
being in the background. Administering counteragent, maybe doing a little scientific investigation.  
Not running through a snowstorm to lure bad guys into traps.  
  
She shook her head. "No harder than an average day in the Keep."  
  
"Right. This is just like making a batch of counteragent." He grinned at her, or tried to. His  
left cheek complained loudly and he stifled the grunt of pain that threatened to escape.  
  
She caught the wince, but made no comment. There was good chance he was going to end up in more  
pain before this was over. Hell, there was a good chance they wouldn't get out of this one at all.  
"Darien, in a way it is. Since coming to the Agency, every day has been interesting for one reason  
or another." She shifted slightly, trying to get a bit warmer, and checked her watch again. If  
everything had gone well with Bobby and Alyx, they should be hearing from them soon. If not, they  
would still have to make the attempt to get back to the Lodge and end this. At the very least to  
treat Darien's injuries and get warm. "How are you doing?"  
  
"Not so good, Claire." He saw no point in lying to her. He was dead tired, he hurt all over, and  
he had a headache building in the back of his skull that boded ill for the amount of time he had  
left before getting really irritable. Just knowing that he was going to have to quicksilver to get  
them in wasn't helping much. He could only hope Claire would be able to get him the counteragent  
quickly once they had arrived. Seizures to go along with his current injuries would not be fun, he  
suspected.  
  
Claire got to her feet and checked the area carefully. When she was as certain as she could be that  
no one was nearby, she put out a hand to help Darien to his feet. He got up with an audible groan of  
pain. They'd been sitting long enough for him to stiffen up as well, and he was getting really tired  
of being cold.  
  
*Dare?* he suddenly heard in his mind.  
  
Concentrating, the way she'd been trying to teach him, he answered, *Go ahead.*  
  
*We'll draw off the hounds. Head to the Lodge.* Alyx sounded exhausted, something he hadn't  
realized you could tell mind-to-mind.  
  
"Claire, Alyx says to go." She nodded, wrapping an arm about his waist to help support him, and  
they moved off through the trees and falling snow to the Lodge.  
  
They reached the tree line and looked across the open expanse with dismay. It might be midmorning,  
but you'd never guess it based on the light level. The snow was so thick, they could just barely  
make out the lights of the Lodge a couple hundred yards away.  
  
"Ready?" Claire asked him, not entirely sure she was.  
  
"As I can be." As they started to move, he was thankful the snow was so heavy. It wasn't likely  
that anyone could see them, unless they were really observant or standing practically on top of  
them. It was like wading through a heavy fog, the snow was falling so thickly.  
  
It took them long minutes before they could even make out the building itself and not just aim for  
the lights that shone dimly. As they neared the huge covered porch that was the front of the  
building, they discovered the worst. Both around and on the porch were two teams of the hounds,  
blocking their way inside. They ducked around the side of the building to discuss the matter. Not  
that there was much to discuss.  
  
"We're going to have to use quicksilver," Darien said without any enthusiasm.  
  
"Darien, I'll get you the counteragent as fast as I can." Claire could sympathize -- she knew he  
hated falling into the madness -- but they were out of options, and everything they needed to help  
him was inside that building.  
  
"I know. We need to do this fast. I don't have much time." He was already cringing in anticipation  
of the pain he knew was going to come. The ache was already there, and it wouldn't take much for it  
to blossom into a full blown attack that would put him on the floor, or perhaps worse.  
  
"Darien, if there were another way..."  
  
He shook his head. "Come on." He tossed and arm around her shoulder and, after a moment to focus,  
he let the quicksilver flow to cover both of them. Moving as swiftly as they could -- they were  
visible to a degree as the snow slid across them -- they headed to the front of the Lodge. They  
avoided those waiting for them, trying to ignore the angry commentary as the men complained to  
each other about the lack of success on this year's hunt. They ran into trouble with the guy pacing  
back and forth on the stairway. He was pacing just fast enough to keep them from getting past.  
  
A shout from out of the snow got his attention, and both Claire and Darien recognized it as Hobbes.  
The guy in their way, as well as others, took off after him, clearing the way for them. Darien could  
feel his demon clawing its way up from the depths of his mind, even as they rushed up the short  
flight of stairs, across the porch, and burst through the doors into the lobby itself.  
  
The back of Darien's head exploded with pain and he went to his knees, the quicksilver falling  
away, dragging the Keeper with him. She managed to escape his convulsive hold and tried to give  
what comfort she could until the pain and seizure had passed. When he finally relaxed and opened  
his eyes, they were streaked with red, showing he was well into Stage Three. A voice from nearby  
got her attention.  
  
"Impressive. You actually survived. Shame though, now we'll have to take care of you ourselves."   
Claire lifted her head to see a round dozen of the Lodge's 'personnel' standing in an arc about  
them, at least half with weapons. "Usually the others take care of our problems for us."  
  
Darien snarled wordlessly and tried to get to his feet. Claire held him in place and he turned to  
glare at her. His hold on sanity was iffy at best.  
  
"Take them to their room," the leader of the group was saying. "We'll catch the other two and deal  
with them all later."  
  
That's when the entrance doors blew off their hinges, smashing into and shattering the decorative  
glass panels on either side.  
  
A rather windblown Alyx stepped in, followed by Hobbes, who was holding his arm and bleeding from a  
shallow cut above one eyebrow. They moved to join their friends in facing down the members of the  
resort staff. Alyx noticed that no one from any of the attendee groups was here. You'd figure, with  
them still not captured, that there would be an audience waiting to see if they were going to make  
it back. They'd surely been monitoring the situation by radio the entire time.  
  
"You never had any intention of letting us live," Hobbes said with carefully restrained anger. "Do  
you set up someone every year, or only when they threaten you?" He'd noticed the same lack of  
witnesses that Alyx had.  
  
"Oh, we've found this necessary a few times. You are the first to actually survive the experience,  
however." He took a step towards them. "Surprising, considering how we made sure the odds were  
anything but in your favor."  
  
"Oh, really?" A new voice said, and Alyx turned to see Jinx, Mister Rapist himself, step out from  
behind a large potted plant. Alyx was so pain-blind that she hadn't recognized him. "I'm sure my  
employer would be very interested to know the games were rigged. We know how he hates to be  
deceived."  
  
The guy in charge actually paled. Whoever Jinx worked for obviously had a lot of power. Enough to  
scare even these guys, but he didn't back down. "We have our reasons. If they live, they put even  
your 'employer' at risk."  
  
Jinx shook his head and chuckled. "Then I guess you aren't interested in his business this year, or  
for the next decade."  
  
That worked, and the guy backed away, conceding the game. "You win," he said to Hobbes. "You get to  
live."  
  
"Bobby, Claire, go get the counteragent," Alyx said, watching Jinx warily. She gave him a slight  
nod, acknowledging the fact that they were now even. She moved to Darien, who was now standing,  
with his fists balled at his sides, fighting with himself.  
  
"Kid...." Hobbes could tell Darien was one short step away from full-blown madness, and was  
unwilling to leave her alone with him. Darien had this tendency to beat the crap out of her when  
things got bad.  
  
"Go," she said quietly, her back to Darien. "I'll be fine."  
  
Claire tugged on Hobbes' uninjured arm and got him moving. By the time they hit the stairs, they  
were running.  
  
"Fine? That's what you think," Darien said from right next to her. He'd moved with a silence that  
could prove deadly if one was totally unaware of him. Alyx was anything but unaware. In fact, she  
knew far more than she wished about what he was feeling and even, to a degree, what he was thinking  
at the moment.  
  
"Dare, don't do this." Alyx had turned to face him, noting that his eyes were heavily streaked  
with blood-swollen veins. He was damn close, and it wouldn't take much to drive him over, to let  
his darker side, his demon, as he called it, take over. Once again he was angry at her, but this  
time she wanted to keep his focus there. If he were to go after someone else, they would be less  
likely to survive. She stood a chance of fighting him off. Of creating a stalemate, if nothing  
else. She only needed to gain a few minutes until the Keeper and Hobbes got back with the  
counteragent.  
  
"You're really beginning to piss me off, you know that?" he snarled at her. That's when he hit her.  
A backhand with his right arm that connected with the side of her head and knocked her to the floor.  
It left her head spinning, her ears ringing, and triggered memories that imposed themselves on  
reality. This wasn't the first time she been knocked to the floor by a blow to her head, and  
somehow she knew it wouldn't be the last. Her hand came up to rub where the blow had connected. A  
gesture that had become familiar to everyone in the last couple of weeks, and even more so in the  
last few days.  
  
Looking up, it was no longer Darien that she saw, but 'him.' When he bent down and grabbed her by  
the front of the sweater to drag her upright, she found herself unable to do anything. This was  
what she was supposed to do -- stand there, head bowed, until 'he' decided she'd either learned her  
lesson or, more often than not, needed a further reminder of where she belonged in the grand scheme  
of things.  
  
"Darien, leave her alone," Claire shouted from somewhere nearby.  
  
Alyx's head snapped up, and she did what she had occasionally done before -- challenged him. She  
stared him in the eyes and refused to look away, to be frightened. The hand holding her dropped  
away, and he shook his head as if trying to clear it. It was that act that brought her back to  
reality. 'He' would never have backed down when she challenged him. Her fear, her old trained  
reactions, drained away, and she saw who was really before her. Yeah, Darien was dangerous,  
terrifying in some ways, but she had no fear of him, or even of what he had become.  
  
"I'm not afraid of you," she said quietly to him, though in many ways it was more to herself.  
Anger, red rage, raced across his features at her words, but it frightened her no more than before.  
This was Darien before her, and even like this she could not find it in herself to fear or hate him.  
For all that he could remind her of things from her past, she would not allow it to control her  
anymore.  
  
So when he snarled, "Bitch," at her and swung again, she simply grabbed the arm and twisted her  
body, swinging around behind him and bending the arm painfully up behind his back. He was  
outrageously strong; the adrenaline in his system giving him extra strength and the ability to  
ignore the pain to a degree. Shoving with her knees, she got him to go to his. From there, she was  
able to shift forward and drive him to the floor, where he began to struggle.  
  
"Claire, hurry up, I can't hold him forever."  
  
Both Bobby and Claire rushed over and, with Bobby helping to hold him still, Claire was able to  
administer the shot. Darien relaxed completely as the drug hit his system, and Alyx released him.  
She slid off his back to sit beside him, with a hand resting gently on his head.  
  
"Alyx?" Claire said, looking at her in concern. She'd seen the momentary terror in Alyx's eyes, the  
completely subservient reaction, however short-lived, and had a good idea what it meant given their  
earlier conversation.  
  
"When we're home, Claire." Alyx found herself unable to meet Claire's eyes, but was actually  
somewhat relieved to have someone she could talk to about it. Maybe she'd finally be able to put it  
behind her.  
  
Claire nodded, and beneath them Darien stirred into awareness with a groan.  
  
Jinx stepped into Alyx's line of sight and she met his eyes. "Thank you."  
  
He shook his head. "You will be out of here by nightfall, and your safety is guaranteed." He  
glanced over at the resort people, who had returned to their places, not wanting to get involved in  
the battle between Alyx and Darien. They didn't want to know. A couple had moved to try and fix the  
doors, to cover the shattered glass with whatever was handy, and to help the various hound teams  
that began to arrive since it had been announced that the hinds had successfully returned. Some  
were carried in, their injuries not allowing them to walk.  
  
"Why are you doing this?" Alyx asked Jinx. She didn't want to read him, for multiple reasons; she  
had gotten more than she wanted from him already, and she was too damn tired to do it with any  
competence right now, anyway.  
  
"Let's just say my employer has a vested interested in keeping you alive." He gave her a wry grin.  
"I would suggest you remain in your room until your transportation arrives."  
  
Alyx nodded, and she and Bobby helped Darien to his feet. The four of them hung off each other --  
all of them tired, all of them in pain -- as they made their slow way to their room. Jinx followed,  
he and two others from his group taking up guard positions in the hallway outside the door.  
  
Darien collapsed onto the sofa with muttered curse. "I need a vacation."  
  
Hobbes snorted. "I've needed one for years. Let's get cleaned up and pack before we can't."  
  
They pretty much groaned in agreement and staggered through it. After showering, Darien fell asleep  
while Claire was patching him up with Alyx's help. Given all his injuries, as well as the  
aftereffects of a near-full-blown madness episode, Claire wasn't surprised. They had all been awake  
for nearly sixteen hours at that point, and the night had been long and arduous. She wanted to sleep  
herself, but she still had things to do first.  
  
Once she had patched up Bobby's arm and the cut over his eye, she helped him pack Darien's gear  
while Alyx got cleaned up. Then she hit the shower herself. She found a stunning collection of  
bruises she hadn't known she'd collected, and was so sore it wasn't funny. When she came out, she  
found comfortable clothes laid out for her, both guys sound asleep, and Alyx in the sitting area  
watching the television. Once she was dressed and brushing out her hair, she debated sleeping  
versus talking to Alyx for a few minutes. She decided to split the difference and examine Alyx for  
any injuries and maybe get in some conversation as well.  
  
She walked into the sitting area with her medical bag. "Your turn."  
  
Alyx didn't move. "You should get some sleep, Claire. I'm fine."  
  
"And when did you get your medical degree?" Claire said, in an attempt at humor that fell flat.  
"Let me be the judge, all right?"  
  
Alyx nodded and submitted to being examined. As the routine exam went on, Alyx found her courage to  
speak. "Claire, I..." She paused, trying to sort out what she wanted to say. "You have to promise  
to tell no one, including the 'Fish."  
  
"Alyx, I'm not sure I can do that," Claire told her honestly. The Official was very specific in  
what he required in her reports about Alyx.  
  
"If there is an overriding reason to tell him, then you can, but I won't talk to anyone else about  
it. I... I don't trust..." She found the word itself very difficult to say, and found she couldn't  
continue the sentence. It was true as it was. She didn't trust, except in her own warped way.  
"Please, Claire."  
  
Claire put away the examination equipment before coming to a  
decision. How many times had she chosen Darien's side over the Official's in the last eighteen  
months? She'd done what was necessary to help him to survive the situation, to give him some chance  
at a reasonably normal existence. Could she do any less for Alyx? "All right, but if it becomes an  
issue, I will have to go to him."  
  
Alyx nodded, realizing that, in this situation, this new version of her life, she had very little  
control and would have to bargain to gain what little she would be allowed. "I won't ask for more."  
She managed a tired smile "Get some sleep. Everything is packed, and I'll play guard dog till  
we're out of here."  
  
"Alyx, you... Never mind. Rest, at least, all right?" Claire patted her on the shoulder and then  
wandered into the bedroom, trying to fight a yawn. Sleep stole her away mere moments after she lay  
down.  
  
Alyx sighed and focused back on the television. Her head ached, but for the first time in weeks she  
didn't care. For the first time, the pain didn't bring up the memories, the fears, the heartache.  
Instead she was calm, relaxed, and finally warm.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  



	11. Chapter Eleven

  
  
A big 'thank you' to my Beta reader Rebecca(WorkerCaste) without whom this fic would never have  
been posted.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Part 11  
  
The four of them stood or sat in the Official's office two days later, after having turned in their  
reports on the little 'vacation' he'd sent them on. Claire had already announced that all three  
agents were on restricted duty for a minimum of a week, and that both Darien and Bobby needed at  
least five days of total rest, preferably in bed. The Official was not happy, to say the least, but  
grudgingly agreed, since both men were sporting bruises and bandages and couldn't seem to move even  
a millimeter without expressing their pain in some sort of primal vocalization.  
  
Of course, he didn't know the Keeper had suggested they play it up for all they were worth.  
  
He even agreed to ease up on Alyx, who at least appeared to be unhurt by the experience. Instead,  
he chose to double her class load for the next week. Claire was about to argue, but Alex got to it  
first.  
  
"No," she said quietly.  
  
The Official continued for a moment before her words sank in. "Miss Silver, you will do as you are  
told."  
  
"Don't you dare treat me like a child," Alyx snapped at the man sitting stiffly behind the desk. "I  
am more than capable enough to handle this... this job. I don't need to memorize any more government  
rules and regulations. Nor do I need any more fighting techniques. If I choose to broaden my  
learning, I will do so on my own." She took two short steps forward to stand just before the desk.  
"If there is something you think I need to learn, let me know and I'll consider it. I doubt I'll  
need the sniper class or the seduction class you have me scheduled for. I'm already an expert shot,  
and perfectly capable of seducing anyone I want."  
  
Hobbes choked back his commentary. The Official had been planning on putting her through the sniper  
and CTS training? Was he nuts? "Chief," he managed when he finally found his voice. "She don't need  
'em."  
  
"She does have a point, sir. Other than the hostage negotiation course, there isn't really any need  
for the others right now," Eberts added as he looked over her file. "Any regulations or such, we can  
simply provide the information. I don't believe she'll have much trouble memorizing it."  
  
"Eberts..." the Official began, but then he paused, considering. "All right. After the hostage  
negotiation course, you'll be finished for the time being. I could use you on more cases, anyway."  
  
"Next week, please." Alyx allowed a small amount of how she was feeling seep into her voice. She  
needed a break, just as both guys did.  
  
Claire backed her on this. "Sir, I do need to run some tests. There were some interesting  
developments recently."  
  
"Agreed. You will make yourself available to the Keeper, as her schedule requires, for the next  
week, and then you will work. Do you understand?" The Official didn't look nearly as upset as he  
was trying to sound. Alyx nodded, thankful for any break. "Fawkes, Hobbes, try to heal quickly. The  
world doesn't stop just because you have some boo-boos."  
  
They pushed themselves to their feet. "Yes, boss," Darien said with sarcasm. "Nice to know you  
care."  
  
As they all turned to leave, the Official spoke again. "Miss Silver, I need to speak with you for  
another moment."  
  
She sighed and gave the others a half-hearted wave to say she'd catch up with them later. "Sure.  
What do you need?"  
  
"Eberts,"  
  
"Yes, sir." Eberts left the room and returned a few minutes later with a man whose presence put  
Alyx immediately on the defensive.   
  
"Jinx," she snarled. "What the hell are you doing here?"  
  
"Agent Silver, meet Special Agent Kevin Terry of the ATF," Eberts said as he took up his position  
behind the Official.  
  
"I said my employers had an interest in keeping you alive," he said with smile.  
  
"What the hell is going on now? I read you, you... you...." She stopped, not really wanting to  
repeat what had been going on in his mind that one night. He still wore the cast on his hand, and  
would for weeks yet.  
  
"Agent Terry has been undercover for nearly two years to gain enough information on Mr. Zatore,"   
Eberts commented.  
  
"The 'convention' got me the last bit I needed. My agency started making arrests yesterday.  
Including myself, which is why I'm loose." He seemed to be relieved to be free of the situation.  
"I wanted to come by and apologize once again. When I found out you were an agent..." He trailed  
off.  
  
"You were doing your job, had a role to play just as I did, and you had no way to know I was more  
than I seemed that first night. I understand." Alyx stepped over to him; she felt the need to  
offer something by way of apology. "Care to join me for lunch?"  
  
He shook his head. "I can't, I have work to do. Maybe another time?" Alyx nodded. He turned back to  
the Official, but didn't say anything.  
  
"Miss Silver, you are free to go. Check in with the Keeper about those tests." Eberts was  
obviously handling the dismissals today.  
  
Alyx gave him one last look and then left without a word.  
  
Agent Terry watched her leave. "Are you certain she's not available for transfer? We could really  
use her."  
  
"Out of the question. She's still a rookie, and she has special needs that you cannot meet." The  
Official was getting tired of this argument. He hated piling the work on her, but it was the only  
way to keep the wolves at bay. Ever since the CIA had gotten a hold of the information on Darien,  
and then her, there had been demands from every corner of the government, every agency -- hell,  
almost every department. The Official was not very big on sharing his toys.  
  
Terry nodded, accepting the answer for now. "I'll inform my superiors. Thank you for your time."  
  
The Official gave the man a polite nod and then Eberts escorted him from the building. Too many  
people knew about his 'special' agents, and he knew one day even his pull would not keep them from  
being yanked away from him, no matter how much they good they did while here. He looked down at  
Miss Silver's report again. Two dozen pages long, with all the details she'd been able to glean  
from the minds of the others there. This information alone would keep them busy for six months, at  
least. Maybe that would be enough to prove that both agents belonged here, and that he was the one  
best suited to utilize their unique talents and get the most work from them with the least effort.  
Maybe he'd be able to justify that budget increase he so desperately needed. For, no matter how  
useful both agents were, they were also damn expensive to maintain.  
  
He closed the report and set it aside for Eberts to go through. He'd track down the other details  
needed and then they would be able to move on this information. Oh, it was going to get interesting  
for the next few months.  
  
  
  
Alyx walked into the Keep, amidst the rather vocal moans of pain from Darien. With a hastily  
smothered laugh, she said, "It's just me, you can quit faking."  
  
Hobbes, who was sitting nearby and had seen her come in, began to laugh. "Claire doesn't want the  
boss putting him back to work. With good reason." He gave a slight nod in the direction of the  
exam table Darien was currently sprawled on.  
  
Alyx poked her head around the glass divider to see Claire drawing a blood sample from a shirtless  
Darien. The bruising on his torso was very impressive. Huge splotches across his side and stomach  
that were red and purple, some even bordering on black. Claire had replaced the bandage over the  
knife wound, which was healing fairly well considering everything. His left cheek bone was also a  
lovely purple, though they still hadn't figured out what he'd been hit with. "Hey, Dare. Sheesh.  
You bruise worse than I do."  
  
Darien turned to look at her. She looked lovely in a fragile sort of way. She definitely looked  
like she could use some down-time. "Gee, thanks. Not the one thing I wanted to be better than you  
at."  
  
Her look became serious. "You're better than me at a lot of things, Darien. Most of then seemingly  
simple." She met his eyes for a second and then turned to look at Hobbes, who had wandered over  
towards Claire. "How are you doing, Bobby?"  
  
"Me? Just fine. You and Keepy did a good job patching me up. I'll be back to normal in a week or  
so. Well, normal for me anyway." Considering what could have happened, he was more than satisfied  
with the outcome. Even with the injuries. "You need something?"  
  
"Just to schedule those tests with Claire before I head home." Alyx leaned against the metal post,  
trying not to smile at Darien, who was trying to pull on his shirt and wincing at every movement.  
  
"Oh, okay." Claire moved to look at her calendar and thought for a moment. "Check back in two  
days. I may have some time then. Even I deserve a couple days off."  
  
"Yes you do, Keepy," Hobbes said as he sidled closer to her. "Maybe you'd like to do go out to  
dinner this evening. With me. And Fawkes, of course." Hobbes wanted to make sure she didn't think  
he was asking for a date. He wouldn't do that. It would set a bad example.  
  
Alyx smiled at the easy camaraderie between the three of them, but she wasn't jealous; she knew she  
wasn't quite ready yet. It would come with time, and time was the one thing she had plenty of. "I'll  
give you call, Claire, about that discussion. Okay?"  
  
"Any time, Alyx." Claire knew it wouldn't be easy for her, and had to let her choose the time and  
place without trying to push her into it. The fact that she was willing to try was a good beginning  
and boded well for her chances of getting past it, of actually healing.  
  
Alyx had made it nearly to the door when Hobbes stopped her with a gentle hand on her shoulder.  
"You're more than welcome to join us. We're just gonna get something to eat and hang out for a  
while. Nothing special."  
  
"Thanks, Bobby, but not tonight. I have plans." She really did, but she could tell he didn't quite  
believe her. "Next time, okay?  
  
"I'll hold you to that." He released her, satisfied that she wasn't going to run off and hide from  
the world this time.  
  
"I know you will. See you guys in a couple days." She walked out the door and out of the building,  
into the bright sunshine and cool winter weather with a smile.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Darien opened the door to his apartment, glad to be home. It had been a fun evening, but neither he  
nor Hobbes were running at full power, and the evening had ended early. It was just after nine PM.  
He had his mail in his hands, including a package that he hadn't been expecting. He tossed  
everything on the pool table while he shed his coat, and debated getting a beer. In the end he went  
with a bottle of water. Claire had him on some painkillers to help him sleep a bit more comfortably,  
and he'd found out the hard way that they didn't mix well with alcohol. Perching on the edge of the  
table, he rolled one of the balls back and forth as he sorted through his mail. A couple of credit  
card offers, a few bills, his Scientific American, and finally the box.  
  
For one instant, he found himself wondering if maybe someone had sent a bomb or something else  
equally lethal to him, and then shook his head. Sometimes Bobby's paranoia was indeed contagious. A  
good thing on occasion, but unnecessary this time, he was quite sure. Opening the box, he found  
another inside, this one gift-wrapped in bright silvery Christmas paper, with a small card  
attached. Maybe his aunt had forgotten something?  
  
He opened the small envelope and slid out the card. He had to read it twice before he was able to  
understand what it said. 'From one invisible (wo)man to another. Bet you thought I forgot. Merry  
Christmas. A.S.' Still holding the card, he picked the box back up and checked the return address.  
It was indeed from her, but that didn't ease his confusion any. Picking the wrapped item up, he  
undid the ribbon and then peeled off the wrapping paper, not entirely sure what he was going to  
find underneath. It was another box, which he opened. Parting the tissue paper, he revealed a book.  
An old book.  
  
Thumbing through the pages, he did a double take at the date on the inscription inside. Considering  
the it was written to an Emily and from a Thomas, thought, he couldn't really doubt the authenticity  
or the date of December 25th 1897. He was holding a fricking first edition copy of H. G. Wells'  
"Invisible Man" in his hands. From Alyx. The woman had to be completely nuts.  
  
He glanced over at the other package, still sitting on his night stand. He wasn't exactly feeling  
tired anymore and figured, what the hell, he'd put it off more than long enough. Besides, there was  
no way he could keep the book; it must have cost a small fortune and, given how much he was paid --  
or not -- on a weekly basis, he seriously doubted she could afford it.  
  
He repacked the book among the tissue paper, grabbed his gift for her and his jacket, and then  
dashed out the door. He was halfway to her place before he remembered her saying she'd had plans.  
"Crap," he muttered to himself, but instead of turning around, he continued. At the very least he  
could wait a little while to see if she showed up. He was a little confused when he saw her car  
parked in its usual spot in the garage. He pulled into the empty space next to it, wondering if  
maybe she'd made an early night of it as well, or perhaps she'd had a date.  
  
That thought stopped him cold with his hand on the door handle of his car. He'd been about to get  
out, and found himself frozen in place as he forced himself to really think about that. What if she  
had a date? Perhaps even a successful one. What if she was up there right now, snuggling and  
cuddling her way into a night spent not alone?  
  
That left him feeling very cold. Forcing himself out of the car, he picked up both packages and  
made his way to the elevator and up to her floor. His steps slowed as he neared her door, suddenly  
afraid of what he was going to find on the other side. He kept telling himself he had no claim on  
her, that she was just a friend, his partner, and whatever she did outside of work was her  
business. Just as he'd been trying to convince Hobbes, Claire, and the Official about himself  
almost since the day he came to the Agency.  
  
They still watched him. The last thing he wanted to do was start acting like Hobbes and check up on  
her just to satisfy his curiosity. Okay, so maybe it was something more than curiosity, but it still  
wouldn't be right.  
  
He knocked on the door instead of ringing her the buzzer. He figured if she was busy she'd just  
ignore it, but the door slid open after only a couple of seconds and the heavenly scent of buttered  
popcorn wafted out. She was standing there in beat-up T-shirt -- one proudly proclaiming 'Yes, the  
world does revolve around me' -- and a pair of jeans with holes in the knees.  
  
"Hey, Dare. Thought you'd still be out with Bobby and Claire." Alyx was surprised at his visit,  
but had known he was here since he pulled into the building's garage. "Want to come in?"  
  
"Uh, sure." He stepped through the door, feeling a bit awkward. "I don't want to interrupt  
anything." He looked about the darkened apartment, noting the huge bowl of popcorn and several  
sodas sitting on her coffee table, as well as the out-of-place bottle of hot sauce. "I thought you  
said you had plans?"  
  
"I do. You're welcome to join me if you want." She waved towards the sofa. "I have some beer. Sam  
Adams."  
  
"Uh, look, I just stopped by to return this." He held out the box she'd sent to him.  
  
"Why? Didn't you like it?" Alyx truly felt bad; she'd had hoped he would understand the meaning,  
but obviously not. "I meant it in a nice way. No insult or anything..."  
  
Darien interrupted. "I know, it's not that. It's just too much."  
  
She shook her head. "No it wasn't. Look around -- what do I have to spend my money on? Hell, half  
my pay goes into my stocks. The apartment is paid for for a year, and the 'Fish paid for all the  
initial furnishings. Come on, I paid cash for my car." She set a hand on his elbow, steered him to  
the sofa, and got him to sit. "The price wasn't the point of that gift and you know it."  
  
Darien set down the boxes on the coffee table. "Yeah, I know." He realized something then. "You  
got Bobby and Claire something, too, didn't you?"  
  
Alyx nodded. "They should have arrived today as well. They may be late, but I wasn't really in the  
mood to celebrate when the time was appropriate. I don't expect anything in return, if that's what  
you're worried about." Finding just the right item for each of them had taken a bit of work and  
some careful study of what she knew about each of them. She was pretty sure both Bobby and Claire  
would like their gifts, but she'd been worried about Darien's reaction to his. His wanting to  
return it had surprised her.  
  
He was rubbing the back of his neck in consternation. He'd thought she didn't want any part of  
them, except maybe himself, and even then it was from a distance. Not sure what to say, he picked  
up her gift and handed it to her. "I should have done this before, but...." He shrugged.  
  
She took it from him and said, "Thank you." She opened it very slowly, being careful to not tear  
the paper or peek to see what was within. About the time Darien was going to just reach over and  
tear the paper off himself, he caught on that she was doing it just to annoy him.  
  
"Alyx, stop teasing and open the damn thing, would you?" He was laughing as he said it, and Alyx  
smiled at him.  
  
Finally getting all the paper off, she turned the book over to see it was a copy of Bartlett's  
Quotations. The really big one. Opening it, she found the note he had written inside the front  
cover. "For those times when you just can't find the right words." She looked at him, not quite  
sure what to say. 'Thank you' was not quite adequate, and the poor man looked like he was expecting  
her to laugh at him. Holding the book, she shifted and kissed him on the cheek, letting her actions  
speak for her.  
  
Darien was pleasantly surprised, and for a long moment was tempted to return the simple kiss with  
something more, but refrained from doing so as he remembered the things she'd said while on their  
little 'vacation.' Needs and not wants. She needed a friend right now, and not something more.  
"So, can I assume rental movies were your big night out, and not a hot date?"  
  
Alyx laughed. "A hot date...ri-ight. And where would I have found the time to meet someone? I've  
spent more time with you and Bobby than I have by myself in the last six weeks or so." She set the  
book on the table and picked up the bowl of popcorn and hot sauce.  
  
"Please don't tell me you put that crap on your popcorn." He actually sounded pained at the mere  
thought.  
  
"Umm, yeah, actually. Have since I was a kid. It was the only way to keep my brothers from stealing  
my popcorn." She started to set them back down. "I'll get you your own bowl and a beer."  
  
He stopped her with a hand on her arm. "I'll get them in a bit. Sit. What are we watching?"  
  
She leaned back into the cushions and, with a flick of her mind, turned on the television and  
started the DVD player. They watched the black and white credits flicker by until the title  
appeared. "'It's a Wonderful Life?' You do realize it's the middle of January, right?"  
  
"Yup, but I'm ready to get into the spirit now. After this is 'Die Hard,' one of my all time  
favorite Christmas flicks." Alyx tossed some of the popcorn into the air, intending to catch it  
in her mouth, but his hand flashed in front of her and caught it.  
  
"You watch Bruce Willis movies?" He was truly surprised.  
  
"Only the good ones. Unlike most males, I actually have taste." He was so stunned, she was able to  
free her popcorn from his hand and get it into her mouth. Once she had swallowed, she continued.  
"After that is 'Scrooged.' That one is just plain fun." When he still hadn't made any comment,  
she became concerned. "Dare?"  
  
"Just tell me you didn't get 'A Christmas Story'." Darien was finding himself astonished again.  
  
"Ick. No, but I did get 'Die Hard II.' Another Christmas classic." She caught his look and smiled.  
"I said I had taste." When he tossed his arm over her shoulder, she shifted closer and leaned  
against him with a sigh. The movie played itself out before them as they shared popcorn and  
companionship. Circumstance had conspired to isolate them both from the rest of society, but now  
they had each found some small comfort in the company of the other.  
  
"Dare, Merry Christmas."  
  
"Merry Christmas, Alyx."  
  
  
  
What has happened to it all?  
Crazy, some say.  
Where is the life that I recognize?  
Gone away.  
But I won't cry for yesterday;  
there's an ordinary world,  
somewhere, I have to find.  
And as I try to make my way  
to the ordinary world  
I will learn to survive.  
  
For me it was one of the hardest lessons I had to learn about this new life of mine, even after  
almost two years -- how to survive, to have the will to keep going, and to actually find some  
happiness in it. And it's a lesson no one can help you learn.   
  
Finis  
  
  
  
A/N: "The Invisible Man" book I mentioned in this story is available for purchase through  
Amazon.com ZShops. It is being sold by Between the Covers Rare Books, INC. at a price of $2000.00.  
It is a 1897 first edition, has a gift note written inside, and is in near fine condition.  
  
The quote at the end if from the song Ordinary World, originally done by Duran Duran. The version I  
listen to is by Naimee Colman and I highly recommend it.  
  
AXZ  
  



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